Totegegie Airport
| Totegegie Airport | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 |
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| IATA: GMR – ICAO: NTGJ | |||
| Summary | |||
| Airport type | Public | ||
| Serves | Gambier Islands, French Polynesia Is also the closest airport to the Pitcairn Islands |
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| Location | Rikitea | ||
| Elevation AMSL | 7 ft / 2 m | ||
| Coordinates | 23°5′4″S 134°53′7″W / 23.08444°S 134.88528°W | ||
| Runways | |||
| Direction | Length | Surface | |
| m | ft | ||
| 12/30 | 2,000 | 6,562 | Asphalt |
| Sources: French AIP[1] | |||
Totegegie Airport is an airport on Totegegie Island (in the Gambier Islands) French Polynesia (IATA: GMR, ICAO: NTGJ). The airport is 9 km northeast of the village of Rikitea.
Totegegie's name consists of the combination of two Mangarevan words (the local language, which takes its name from Mangareva, the main island of the archipelago): TOTE, which means a sandy islet on a reef (equivalent motu Polynesian) and GEGIE (pronounced gniégnié) which is the name of a small shrub typical of atolls that looks much like a juniper bush without berries.
This shrub (Pemphis acidula) is widespread on Polynesian atolls and is best known as the miki miki. On Totegegie which is one of Mangareva's reefs approximately 9 Km from Rikitea, the island's administrative settlement, the airport of the archipelago is to be found. It is also the only building there - Totegegie (IATA: GMR • ICAO code: NTGJ). The airport is 1652 km from Tahiti,[2] and is also classified as an territorial aerodrome. Its only service is to Tahiti Faaa International Airport on Tuesdays.[3]
Mangareva is crucial in its role as the outside world's link to the more famous Pitcairn Island. One of the only ways a traveler can reach Pitcairn Island is to fly to Tahiti, then to Mangareva. From there, a 32-hour boat ride will take one to Pitcairn Island.[4]
Contents |
History [edit]
- 1967
- Construction of a runway of 3,500 m by the 115th running of the Society of the Pacific Experimentation Centre Pacific (CEP).
- 1968
- Landing of the first aircraft at Totegegie, a Piper Aztec, followed by a Breguet Deux-Ponts. The same year, a DC-6 performed weekly service between Totegegie, Mururoa and Papeete.
- 1978
- First commercial air link Totegegie-Papeete.[5]
- 1998
- Decommissioning of the French army, including the shed and wharf metal. At the end of operations 50 tons of scrap metal had been collected.[6]
- 2008
- Expansion and modernization of existing Terminal.
Airlines and destinations [edit]
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Air Tahiti | Tahiti |
Passengers [edit]
The increase in passenger numbers is shown below.[7]
| Totegegie | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Passengers | 5 319 | 5 129 | 4 937 | 5 609 | 5 922 | 6 598 | 6 938 | 7 155 | 7 409 |
Gallery [edit]
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References [edit]
- ^ NTGJ – TOTEGEGIE (PDF). AIP from French Service d'information aéronautique, effective 2 May 2013.
- ^ http://www.ispf.pf/ISPF/Chiffres/Transports/TrMaritAeri.aspx
- ^ http://www.visitpitcairn.pn/visitpitcairn.html
- ^ http://www.visitpitcairn.pn/visitpitcairn.html
- ^ http://gadper.free.fr/public/Polynesie/les_anciens_racontent/Construction%20de%20la%20piste%20de%20Totegegie%20en%201967-1.pdf
- ^ http://www.moruroa.org/medias/pdf/T%C3%A9moignage%20Gambier%201967.pdf
- ^ http://www.aeroport.fr/les-aeroports-de-l-uaf/stats-totegegie.php
