Departure
96%
vs 95% ▲ 1
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Moi International Airport lies on the coast just outside Mombasa, Kenya's second city, and is the country's principal gateway to the Indian Ocean coast. It offers a long ILS-equipped main runway alongside a shorter crosswind strip, making it accessible to everything from wide-body airliners to light general aviation traffic using its dedicated General Aviation Terminal.
Moi International Airport serves Mombasa and the surrounding coastal region of Kenya, operating as the country's main international airport outside the capital. It is operated by the Kenya Airports Authority and named after former President Daniel arap Moi. For a visiting sim pilot the field is notable for its long ILS-equipped main runway, a shorter secondary strip, a working General Aviation Terminal, and a history stretching back to wartime military use.
The airport lies at an elevation of 190 feet, close to Mombasa on Kenya's coast, roughly 425 kilometres by air southeast of Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, the country's busiest airport. It sits near Kilindini Harbour, historically significant as the base for the British Eastern Fleet.
Moi International Airport has two physical runways. The main runway, 03/21, is 10,966 feet long, has a hard surface and is lit, with an ILS available on the 21 approach. The secondary runway, 15/33, is 4,590 feet long, also hard-surfaced and lit.
Radio services at Moi International Airport include Approach on 120.3 MHz, Ground on 121.6 MHz, Apron Control/Radar on 121.7 MHz, and Tower on 118.6 MHz. An ILS is available on runway 21 for instrument approaches.
The airfield was built during the Second World War by the Engineer Corps of the South African Army. It was subsequently used by the Fleet Air Arm as a land base for the British Eastern Fleet, which was based at nearby Kilindini Harbour from 1942, by the Royal Air Force's AHQ East Africa and No. 246 Wing operating anti-submarine Catalina flying boats along the East African coast, and by the South African Air Force during the campaign against Italian forces in Abyssinia. The airport was later renamed after President Daniel arap Moi. It served as the headquarters for the US Central Command's regional control for Operation Provide Relief from August to December 1992, and from July to September 1994 was used almost continuously as a refuelling stop for C-141 and C-5 freighter aircraft supporting the Operation Support Hope humanitarian mission into Rwanda, a role that ended when runway expansion works began. In 2002, terrorists fired two Strela missiles at an Israeli aircraft departing the airport, though the aircraft was not hit.
Moi International Airport today has three terminals: Terminal 1 for international flights, Terminal 2 for domestic services, and a separate General Aviation Terminal handling private and charter flights, business jets, medical evacuation flights and high-end tourism charters. Aircraft maintenance at the field is provided by Benair Engineering, whose first hangar, built in 1997, stands adjacent to the original government hangar constructed to maintain Catalina flying boats during the Second World War. The airport was recognised by Airports Council International in 2020 as the best airport in Africa in its passenger category.
