Kabul International Airport (Kabul)

 1960_construction, international airport

Kabul International Airport (IATA: KBL, ICAO: OAKB), formerly known as Hamid Karzai International Airport or Khwaja Rawash Airport. The airport is also commonly referred to as KAIA.

Kabul International Airport (KBL/OAKB)
During the Soviet occupation of the 1980s the airport was the scene of bitter fighting since it was the main supply lifeline to Russia. After the Soviet withdrawl the area was littered with wrecked aircraft and land mines.

Due to international sanctions under the Taliban, the airport was closed, with few international flights. Following the United States attack on Afghanistan after the September 11, 2001 attacks in New York, the airport reopened. At first, it was only for the US military and the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), a NATO-led peacekeeping force.

After the removal of UN sanctions, in early 2002, it was finally allowed to be used for civilian airlines. The US military and ISAF (with the Romanian Air Force a lead contributor in 2005) run the airport and provide security with the Afghan authorities.

The airport had 54,300 movements in 2006. So far (July 2007) traffic has increased by 33% and is projected to end up on 66,000 movements. The average daily movement in 2007 is so far 191, and the record for 2007 is 347 movements.