La Tontouta International Airport

Tontouta International Airport

*Aéroport de Nouméa - La Tontouta*
Tontouta International Airport; Aéroport de Nouméa - La Tontouta
	IATA: NOU; ICAO: NWWW;
Summary
Airport type	Military/public
Operator	New Caledonia Chamber of Commerce & Industry
Serves	Nouméa
Location	Païta, New Caledonia, France
Hub for	Aircalin
Elevation AMSL	52 ft / 16 m
Coordinates	22°00′59″S 166°12′58″E / 22.01639°S 166.21611°E
Website	www.aeroports.cci.nc/en/tontouta/
Map
	NOU/NWWW Location of airport in Païta, New Caledonia NOU/NWWW NOU/NWWW (Oceania)
Runways
Statistics (2023)
Passengers
Passengers	492,193
Passenger traffic change	53.7%
Aircraft movements	3,602
Aircraft movements change	51.3%
	Source: Aeroport.fr

La Tontouta International Airport, also known as Nouméa – La Tontouta International Airport (French: Aéroport de Nouméa - La Tontouta; IATA: NOU, ICAO: NWWW), is the main international airport in New Caledonia, an overseas collectivity of France in the southwest Pacific Ocean, as well as the military base (Base aérienne 186 Nouméa) for the French Air Force based in New Caledonia.

The airport is located in the municipality of Païta, approximately 37 km (23 mi) northwest of Nouméa. La Tontouta International Airport serves international flights, while Nouméa Magenta Airport, within the city of Nouméa, serves domestic flights. The airport is regularly served by four airlines, including Aircalin, which is based at the airport. In 2017, 529,349 passengers used the airport.^[2]

History

World War II

Tontouta Air Base was originally constructed by the United States Navy's Seabees for the Pacific Theater of the Second World War. The base had two runways numbered 3/21 and 11/29. The base reverted to local (French) control after the war and today's remaining runway is aligned on 11/29.^[3]

United States Army Air Forces units based here included:

64th Troop Carrier Squadron operating Douglas C-47 Skytrains in 1943
67th Fighter Squadron operating Bell P-39 Airacobras from 17 March 1942 – 24 April 1943

Boeing B-17E Flying Fortress of the 11th Bomb Group, 43d Bomb Squadron at Tontouta in August 1942

United States Marine Corps units based here included:

VMF-212 operating Grumman F4F Wildcats
VMO-251 operating Grumman F4F Wildcats from June–August 1942

Terminal expansion

A major expansion of the airport's terminal was completed in 2012 after several years of work. The project resulted in a significant increase in the terminal's size and included a new arrivals area, a larger check-in area and the installation of two jetbridges.^[4] The terminal now has five stands capable of handling commercial jet aircraft, two of which are served by the new airbridges and three of which utilise stairs to access the aircraft. In addition, the airport has several more stands designed to handle smaller aircraft.

2024 New Caledonia unrest

In response to the 2024 New Caledonia unrest, Nouméa's international airport was closed until 21 May 2024. Due to the airport's closure, Air New Zealand cancelled its flights to Nouméa scheduled for 18 and 20 May.^[5]

Airlines and destinations

The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights in Nouméa:

Airlines	Destinations
Air Calédonie	Port Vila^[6]
Air New Zealand	Auckland (resumes 23 June 2025)^[7]
Aircalin	Auckland, Bangkok–Suvarnabhumi,^[8] Brisbane, Nadi, Papeete, Paris–Charles de Gaulle,^[8] Port Vila, Singapore, Sydney, Wallis Island
Fiji Airways	Nadi (suspended)^[9]^[10]
Qantas	Sydney (suspended)^[9]
QantasLink	Brisbane^[11]

Statistics

Annual passenger traffic at NOU airport. See Wikidata query.

Nouméa - La Tontouta^[12]
Year	Passengers	Freight (tonnes)	Commercial aircraft movements
2000	359,839	5,244	3,111
2001	348,025	5,061	3,118
2002	359,293	5,094	3,349
2003	371,247	5,197	3,128
2004	388,308	5,200	3,330
2005	409,096	5,566	3,254
2006	415,813	5,451	3,290
2007	445,305	5,606	3,440
2008	457,387	6,220	3,661
2009	462,698	5,809	3,730
2010	479,803	6,221	3,797
2011	492,830	6,299	3,787
2012	486,171	5,632	3,814
2013	476,174	4,953	3,701
2014	479,843	4,870	3,822
2015	497,718	4,811	3,891
2016	515,166	4,407	4,052
2017	529,349	4,277	3,844
2018	538,791