Wonderboom Airport is located in

Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends eastward into the foot ...

North,

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

History

The airport was opened in 1937, being built on the farm Wonderboom approximately 15 km north of Pretoria. Originally a civilian airstrip for light aircraft, it was used for military training purposes during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

before returning to civilian control in 1945. The airport remains a light aircraft facility to this day. In 1965, the airport was extensively extended, with a new terminal building and hangars being constructed as well as the runways being extended. This led to Wonderboom Airport being able to receive its first

Boeing 737 The Boeing 737 is a narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing at its Boeing Renton Factory, Renton Factory in Washington (state), Washington. Developed to supplement the Boeing 727 on short and thin routes, the twinjet retains the Boeing 707, 7 ...

in 1982. In 1993, runway 11/29 was again upgraded to its present length of 1,828 m. Airport management passed to the Greater Pretoria Metropolitan Council in December 1994. Towards the end of 2000, ownership passed to Pretoria.

Scheduled service plans

In 2007, plans were mooted by the city of Pretoria for scheduled passenger service from Wonderboom Airport. The municipality spent R165.5 million in order to upgrade the airport in anticipation of passenger flights. In July 2009, it was announced that scheduled passenger service to

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

and

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

was due to commence in October 2009. The airport would initially be able to cope with 450 departing and 400 incoming passengers per hour. It is believed that there is a market for passenger service, mainly Pretoria residents that do not wish to commute to

OR Tambo International Airport O. R. Tambo International Airport is an international airport situated in Kempton Park, Gauteng, South Africa. It serves as the primary airport for domestic and international travel to/from South Africa and since 2020, it is Africa's second ...

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Dem ...

; an estimated 25%-30% of passengers using O.R. Tambo are Pretoria residents.

Accidents and incidents

*On 24 August 1998, Aero Modifications International DC-3-65TP ZS-NKK of Speed Service Couriers crashed on take-off. The aircraft had been in maintenance. Witnesses on duty in the control tower as well as a passing motorist reported seeing a long flame squirting out of the left engine on takeoff. The result was an engine engulfed in fire on impact. During the emergency the aircraft APR (Automatic Power Reserve) on the right engine kicked in to compensate for the loss of power on the left engine, boosting it with over 100 hp more and thus causing the aircraft to violently roll over almost onto its roof. The pilots reacted by closing the throttles to try and stop the roll but were too low and the wing tip struck the ground, pulling the aircraft's nose into the ground. One of the two crew was killed. The aircraft was on a mail flight to Durban International Airport. *The

2018 Pretoria Convair 340 crash On 10 July 2018, a Convair 340 owned by Dutch aviation museum Aviodrome crashed during a trial flight in Pretoria, South Africa. The aircraft suffered an engine fire moments after takeoff and crashed into a factory building as the crew attempted ...

on 10 July 2018 took place near Wonderboom Airport minutes after taking off from it. Two people, one among 19 occupants in the plane and one on the ground, died during this crash of a Convair 340 that was making a training flight with plans to be later flown to the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

References

External links

Official website

Aerial photograph on Google MapsWonderboom Airport Interest Group
{{authority control Buildings and structures in Pretoria Airports in South Africa Airfields of the United States Army Air Forces Air Transport Command in Central and South Africa Transport in Pretoria World War II airfields in South Africa