Cibao International Airport
Cibao International Airport Aeropuerto Internacional del Cibao | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||
| Owner/Operator | Aeropuerto Internacional del Cibao S.A. | ||||||||||
| Serves | Santiago de los Caballeros | ||||||||||
| Location | Licey in Santiago Province, Dominican Republic | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 565 ft (172 m) | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 19°24′22″N 070°36′17″W / 19.40611°N 70.60472°W | ||||||||||
| Website | Aeropuerto Cibao | ||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||
  MDST Location of airport in the Dominican Republic | |||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||
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| Helipads | |||||||||||
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| Statistics (2025) | |||||||||||
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| Source: Cibao International Airport | |||||||||||
Cibao International Airport (Spanish: Aeropuerto Internacional del Cibao) (IATA: STI, ICAO: MDST), also known as Santiago Airport, is located in Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic's second-largest city. The airport is located 15 kilometers (9.3 mi) southeast of Santiago City's center.
Since its inauguration, in terms of passenger traffic, Cibao International has been projected to become one of the busiest airports in the country. With over 2 million passengers in 2023, it is the country's third-busiest airport by passenger traffic and aircraft movements, after Punta Cana International Airport and Las Américas International Airport.[1]
The air terminal mainly serves Dominicans residing in the United States, the Turks and Caicos Islands, and Puerto Rico, as well as Haitians residing in the Cibao Region. Recently many tourists and missionary workers are using Cibao International as a gateway to the Dominican Republic, with new routes to Spain and Colombia.
The airport contains Dominican Republic's busiest international route (STI-JFK), with over 1.078 million passengers every year as of 2023.[2] JetBlue is the primary international operator, with up to twenty daily flights. The airport has a new terminal under construction expected to be inaugurated in mid-2026.[3]
History
[edit]Plans for the construction of the airport were first proposed in 1969. The Cibao International Airport Corporation was created on 29 March 1978, with the cooperation of José Armando Bermúdez (president), Víctor Espaillat, Manuel Arsenio Ureña, Dr. José Augusto Imbert, Mario Cáceres and Ing. Carlos S. Fondeur, who acquired the land necessary to build the new airport.[4]
The construction of the airport began on 15 February 2000, and was finished in 2002. The airport was inaugurated on 18 March 2002, with two direct flights to San Juan operated by American Eagle.[4]
In May 2002, Aeromar Líneas Aéreas Dominicanas made the first direct flight from Santiago to JFK Airport in New York. Later that month American Airlines and North American Airlines began direct flights to New York, Miami, and San Juan. A few months later Continental Airlines began direct flights from Newark. This was followed by direct service by JetBlue Airways and Delta Air Lines, both from New York.[5]
In 2003, Aeromar Líneas Aéreas Dominicanas stopped their flights into Santiago after the airline ceased operations.[4]
By the end of 2005, the airport's operator began one of the biggest expansions for this airport. They expanded the customs hall and rebuilt the west and east sides of the terminal. The terminal saw the addition of a second floor. This expansion was finalized in 2006. The runway's 400-meter (1,300 ft) expansion is currently in folders, but there is no scheduled date to begin or conclude this expansion yet.[4]
In April 2008, Cibao International became the first airport in the country to eliminate fees for private planes, making it possible to increase tourism in the region.[4]
On 27 November 2021, the works of infrastructure expansion started with presence of the president Luis Abinader.[6] By 2025, the airport moved 2.2 million passengers yearly.[7] By 2026, Air Europe increaselights frequency from two to three weekly flights.[8]
Infrastructure
[edit]International terminal
[edit]The airport's main terminal (international) has six gates (B1-B6).[9]
Runway and taxiways
[edit]The runway length is 2,620 m, which can support all types of passenger airliners. The airport's operators are discussing the expansion of the runway to allow larger aircraft for long-haul flights from Europe. Cibao International Airport's taxiways are composed by two exits E-1 and E-2; E-1 is located on the west side of Runway 11/29, next to the direction 11 of that runway. E-2 is located in the east side of the runway, next to direction 29 of the runway.[10]
Expansion
[edit]On 4 July 2021, the Cibao International Airport S.A. announced a plan to renovate most of the airport's existing infrastructure with a cost of $300 million. The airport is currently the third busiest in the country, and is expected to increase its services from 2 million of passengers in 2023 to 3.5+ million by 2040.[11]
The design work was carried out by Luis Vidal + Architects, and it will be built under the direction of the Airport's technical team.[12]
Since December 2021 the airport is under renovation. The Airport technical team estimates that the renovation process will take about 26 months.[13] By mid 2025, local media estimate the total cost of the renovation of US$700 million and expected to be completed on Early 2027.[14]
Airlines and destinations
[edit]Passenger
[edit]Cargo
[edit]| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Amerijet International[23] | Miami, Puerto Plata |
Statistics
[edit]| Rank | City | Passengers | Carriers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New York-JFK, United States | 1,078,673 | Delta Air Lines, JetBlue |
| 2 | Newark, United States | 490,697 | JetBlue, United Airlines |
| 3 | Boston, United States | 160,424 | JetBlue |
| 4 | Miami, United States | 146,695 | American Airlines |
| 5 | Orlando, United States | 109,405 | JetBlue |
| 6 | San Juan, Puerto Rico | 88,752 | Frontier Airlines, JetBlue |
| 7 | Fort Lauderdale, United States | 84,478 | JetBlue |
| 8 | Madrid, Spain | 31,421 | Air Europa |
Incidents and accidents
[edit]- On 7 February 2008, a Caribair flight crashed close to La Romana, when its engines stopped. There were no fatalities, but the pilot had some injuries. The aircraft was a Britten Norman Islander BN-2A, registered as HI-653CA, and had departed on a flight to Punta Cana International Airport via La Romana International Airport at around 18:00 local time.[24]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ↑ "Aeropuerto del Cibao alcanza los dos millones de viajeros en el 2023". Diario Libre (in Spanish). 27 December 2023. Retrieved 25 December 2024.
- 1 2 COMMERCIAL AIR TRANSPORT - STATISTICS REPORT OF THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 2025 (PDF) (12 ed.). Santo Domingo, Domincan Republic: Junta Aviacion Civil. 2025. ISSN 2676-0517. Retrieved 11 March 2025.
- ↑ "Dominican Republic airport expansion will add mixed-use features". Building Design+Construction. 4 April 2022. Retrieved 25 December 2024.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Map - Cibao International Airport (Cibao International Airport)". www.mapnall.com. Retrieved 6 October 2023.
- ↑ JetBlue and DR1.com/forums (8 March 2004). "JetBlue operations in STI". DR1 Dominican Republic Forums. DR1.com. Retrieved 26 April 2008.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ↑ "Abinader da primer palazo para ampliar Aeropuerto del Cibao con inversión de US$300 millones – El Nuevo Diario (República Dominicana)". elnuevodiario.com.do (in Spanish). 27 November 2021. Retrieved 22 January 2026.
- ↑ Ponce, Miguel (6 December 2025). "Aeropuerto Cibao espera recibir 200 mil viajeros Navidad - Periódico elCaribe" (in Spanish). Retrieved 22 January 2026.
- ↑ Parra, Félix (6 June 2025). "Aeropuerto Internacional del Cibao contará con elevado y nueva terminal para 2027". lainformacion.com.do. Retrieved 22 January 2026.
- ↑ IDAC (1 March 2008). "Ramps Map STI" (PDF). AIP Dominicana (IDAC). Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 September 2011. Retrieved 26 April 2008.
- ↑ AIP/AIS Dominicana (1 March 2008). "Diagrama Aeroportuario - Dirección de Navegación Aérea". IDAC Instituto Dominicano de Aviación Civil. Archived from the original on 3 October 2011. Retrieved 23 March 2008.
- ↑ "Anuncian ampliación del Aeropuerto del Cibao - Actualidad - www.diariolibre.com". 8 July 2021.
- ↑ "Aeropuerto del Cibao invertirá 300 millones de dólares para su ampliación - Noticias de turismo - arecoa.com".
- ↑ "Aeropuerto del Cibao inicia trabajos de ampliación de su terminal de pasajeros - Noticias - aeropuertocibao.com.do".
- ↑ Ponce, Miguel (5 June 2025). "Aeropuerto Cibao construye elevado en salida de viajeros - Periódico elCaribe" (in Spanish). Retrieved 22 January 2026.
- ↑ "Air Europa Commits to 2024-2026 Strategic Plan Amid IAG Withdrawal". Aviacion Online. 27 March 2026. Retrieved 27 July 2026.
- ↑ "American Airlines Adds Seasonal Santiago Service From Philadelphia". Travel and Tour World. 4 March 2026. Retrieved 6 March 2026.
- ↑ "Copa Airlines anuncia três novas rotas para América Latina". Panrotas (in Portuguese). 3 July 2025. Retrieved 3 July 2025.
- ↑ "Celebrating 20 Years: Delta's impact on tourism and growth in Santo Domingo". Delta Newshub. 14 October 2024. Retrieved 4 September 2026.
- ↑ "Frontier Airlines Is Launching New Philadelphia–Dominican Republic Flights". Caribbean Journal (in Portuguese). 18 September 2025. Retrieved 3 July 2026.
- ↑ "JetBlue adds nine new routes from Fort Lauderdale starting November". Street Insider. 10 September 2025.
- ↑ "JetBlue Announces Puerto Rico Expansion, New Mint Service to Three Cities, and Three New Destinations". JetBlue Newsroom. 8 May 2024. Retrieved 8 May 2024.
- ↑ https://www.elcaribe.com.do/panorama/pais/jetblue-lanza-nuevos-vuelos-sin-escalas-de-orlando-a-rd/
- ↑ amerijet.com - Flight schedule retrieved 5 December 2021
- ↑ Franklin Cordero (17 February 2008). "Caribair Britten N Islander Crash in La Romana". El Caribe. Archived from the original on 3 March 2008. Retrieved 18 March 2008.
External links
[edit]
Media related to Cibao International Airport at Wikimedia Commons
