Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport

Harare International Airport is an international airport in Harare, Zimbabwe. It is the largest airport in the country and serves as the base of Air Zimbabwe. The airport is operated by the Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe.HistoryCommissioned in 1956 and officially opened on 5 February 1957, Salisbury Airport cost £924,000 to build. According to the 1950 report of the Director of Civil Aviation, the city's original aerodrome, Belvedere Airport, had proved to be inadequate and had to be abandoned for the following reasons: the runway was some 45° out of alignment, given that approaching aircraft had to enter through a gap in Warren Hills; because of the skewed alignment, aircraft were forced to take-off over the city centre which posed a real danger of accidents; the growing number of high-rise buildings in the city, particularly Milton Building, posed a risk to aircraft; Belvedere Airport had been built to accommodate the RAF Elementary Flying Training School, the layout and design of the buildings were not particularly suitable for commercial aviation. A site therefore had to be found for the construction of an airport that would be safer and more suitable for commercial activities.The Southern Rhodesian government had appointed a Southern Rhodesia Aerodrome Board as early as January 1947, whose task was to advise the government on the selection, acquisition, construction and maintenance of government aerodromes and landing grounds in Southern Rhodesia. Later the same year, an Airfield Construction Unit was formed to undertake an extensive search for a suitable site for a national airport.