Wad Medani, SD 🇸🇩 Closed Airport
ICAO
SD-0028
IATA
-
Elevation
1350 ft
Region
SD-07
Local Time
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Loading...GPS Code: Not available
Local Code: Not available
Location: 14.383451° N, 33.526679° E
Continent: Africa
Type: Closed Airport
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The airport was gradually phased out and closed in the late 1990s or early 2000s. There is no exact, officially recorded date, as the closure was a process driven by urban expansion and plans for a replacement facility.
The primary reasons for closure were urban encroachment and obsolescence. The airport was located very close to the expanding city center, making its land highly valuable for urban redevelopment. Its proximity to populated areas also posed a safety concern. Furthermore, its basic facilities and unpaved dirt/gravel runway were inadequate for modern aircraft and growing demand. The closure was concurrent with plans to build a new, larger international airport further west of the city, which was intended to be its replacement (though this new project was never fully completed or operational).
The site of the former airport has been completely redeveloped and is now an integrated part of the city of Wad Medani. The land is occupied by residential neighborhoods, commercial properties, new roads, and the Wad Medani Stadium complex, which sits just southeast of the former runway's location. While the faint outline of the main runway can still be traced on satellite imagery, it is bisected by numerous structures and roads, making the site entirely unrecognizable and unusable as an airfield.
Wad Medani Airport was the main air gateway for Al Jazirah (Gezira) State, a vital agricultural region in Sudan. Its primary importance was linked to the Gezira Scheme, one of the world's largest irrigation projects. The airport handled government and administrative flights, general aviation, and likely some domestic passenger services by Sudan Airways. A significant part of its operations would have been dedicated to agricultural aviation, such as crop dusting, which was essential for the large-scale cotton and grain production in the surrounding area. It served as a key logistical hub for the administration and economy of this critical region.
There are zero prospects for reopening the original Wad Medani Airport (SD-0028). The site has been permanently repurposed for urban development. Any future air service for the city is contingent on the completion of the separate, new Wad Medani International Airport project located to the west of the city. However, construction on that new facility has been stalled for many years due to economic and political instability in Sudan, and its future remains highly uncertain, with no clear timeline for completion or opening.