George Airport

George Airport George Lughawe
IATA: GRJ ICAO: FAGG
Summary
Airport type	Public
Operator	Airports Company South Africa
Serves	George, Garden Route District Municipality, South Africa
Opened	1977
Hub for	FlySafair CemAir Airlink
Elevation AMSL	639 ft / 195 m
Coordinates	34°00′24″S 22°22′51″E / 34.00667°S 22.38083°E / -34.00667; 22.38083
Website	https://www.airports.co.za/airports/george-airport
Map
GRJ Location in the Western Cape Show map of Western Cape GRJ GRJ (South Africa) Show map of South Africa GRJ GRJ (Africa) Show map of Africa
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 11/29 2,000 6,561 Asphalt 02/20 (CLOSED) 1,220 4,002 Asphalt
Statistics (FY2024/25)
Passenger traffic 833,455 Aircraft movements 31,265
Source: Airports Company South Africa[1][2]

George Airport (IATA: GRJ, ICAO: FAGG) (Afrikaans: George Lughawe) is an airport located in George, Western Cape, South Africa. It was formerly known as P. W. Botha Airport, named after the state president who lived in this part of the country.

This airport was originally built in 1977 as an exact replica of the Keetmanshoop Airport in Namibia, but since its expansion and renovation, it now looks completely different. George Airport has won the award for Africa's best airport in the category under two million passengers per year six times; the last time was in 2017. The award is given by Airports Council International (ACI).^[3]

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

Airlines	Destinations
Airlink	Cape Town, Johannesburg–O. R. Tambo
CemAir	Bloemfontein,[4] Cape Town,[5] Durban,[6] Johannesburg–O. R. Tambo[7] Hoedspruit (Launches 16 May 2026)[8]
FlySafair	Cape Town, Johannesburg–Lanseria,[9] Johannesburg–O. R. Tambo[10]

Cargo

Airlines	Destinations
BidAir Cargo	Johannesburg–O. R. Tambo[11]

Traffic statistics

Annual Aircraft & Passenger Movements^{[12][13][14][15]}

Year	Aircraft	% Change		Passengers	% Change
2006	-	-		589,674	4.2%
2007	-	-		652,031	10.6%
2008	-	-		630,385	3.3%
2009	-	-		548,498	13.0%
2010	-	-		526,823	4.0%
2011	-	-		565,291	7.3%
2012	39,664	-		544,306	3.7%
2013	43,758	10.3%		572,130	5.1%
2014	55,432	26.7%		615,688	7.6%
2015	57,924	4.5%		718,881	16.8%
2016	51,405	11.2%		738,641	2.7%
2017	32,961	35.9%		801,480	8.5%
2018	43,016	30.5%		835,906	4.3%
2019	36,202	15.8%		830,118	0.7%
2020	18,486	49.0%		267,816	67.7%
2021	20,276	9.7%		609,069	127.4%
2022	28,695	41.5%		757,567	24.4%
2023	29,265	2.0%		803,184	6.0%
2024	31,265	6.8%		833,455	3.8%

Accidents and incidents

• 7 December 2009 – An Embraer ERJ 135 (registration:ZS-SJW) operated by Airlink on a scheduled flight (SA-8625) overran the runway in wet conditions and ended up on a public road. There were no fatalities, but the plane suffered substantial damage.^[16][17] The accident was caused by an incorrect sealant used on the runway, and the airline was cleared of all blame. Airlink's insurers took legal action against the state-owned Airports Company of South Africa.^[18]

See also

• List of airports in South Africa
• List of South African airports by passenger movements

References

1. "ACSA – Durban Passenger Statistics". Airports Company South Africa. Archived from the original on 29 September 2011. Retrieved 6 May 2011.
2. "ACSA – George Aircraft Statistics". Airports Company South Africa. Retrieved 8 December 2024.
3. "George Airport wins award". George Herald. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
4. https://www.facebook.com/flycemair/photos/a.1416817981867233/2776145309267820/ ^{[user-generated source]}
5. "Closure of Plettenberg Bay Airport to commercial flights sparks outcry".
6. "Cemair 2Q23 Network Additions". AeroRoutes. 29 March 2023. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
7. "CemAir / Scheduled flights in South Africa".
8. "CemAir launches direct route between George and Hoedspruit". CemAir. CemAir (Pty) Ltd. 6 November 2024. Retrieved 12 November 2025.
9. "Safair Adds Lanseria – George From March 2025". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 18 December 2024.
10. "FlySafair Flight Schedule".
11. bidaircargo.com – Network Archived 1 November 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 13 January 2021
12. "ACSA Passenger Statistics". Airports Company South Africa. Archived from the original on 29 October 2013. Retrieved 23 October 2013.
13. https://www.airports.co.za/StatisticsLib/GRJ%20PASSENGER.pdf ^{[bare URL PDF]}
14. "GRJ Passenger Stats 2025" (PDF).
15. "Aircraft Movements 2025" (PDF).
16. Hradecky, Simon (7 December 2009). "Accident: SA Airlink E135 at George on Dec 7th 2009, overran runway". The Aviation Herald. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
17. "Airlink plane overshoots George runway". Mail & Guardian. 7 December 2009. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
18. Business Day – Airlink in clear, Acsa blamed for George near-disaster

External links

Media related to George Airport at Wikimedia Commons

• Official website
• Weather SA – George Airport webcam Archived 18 November 2008 at the Wayback Machine