V. C. Bird International Airport

"TAPA" redirects here. For other uses, see Tapa.

V. C. Bird International Airport (IATA: ANU, ICAO: TAPA) is an international airport located on the island of Antigua, 8 km (5.0 mi) northeast of St. John's, the capital of Antigua and Barbuda.

V. C. Bird International Airport
IATA: ANU ICAO: TAPA
Summary
Airport type	Public
Operator	Antigua and Barbuda Airport Authority
Serves	St. John's, Antigua and Barbuda
Location	Osbourn, Antigua and Barbuda
Hub for	BMN Air FlyMontserrat LIAT20 Sunrise Airways
Elevation AMSL	62 ft / 19 m
Coordinates	17°08′12″N 061°47′35″W
Website	http://vcbia.com
Map
ANU Location in Antigua Show map of Antigua and Barbuda ANU ANU (Caribbean) Show map of Caribbean
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 07/25 3,038 9,967 Asphalt
Statistics (2018)
Passengers 981,159 Passenger change 17-18 NA Aircraft movements 38,305 Movements change 17-18 NA
Source: DAFIF,[1][2] 2009 World Airport Traffic Report.[3]

History

The former terminal, now used as offices, but occasionally has general aviation-related flights.

The airport originally was operated by the United States Army Air Forces.

The airport was built as a United States Army Air Forces base around 1941 and named Coolidge Airfield after Capt. Hamilton Coolidge (1895–1918), a United States Army Air Service pilot killed in World War I.^{[citation needed]}

Flying units assigned to the airfield were:

• 35th Bombardment Squadron (25th Bombardment Group) 11 November 1941 until November 1942
• 12th Bombardment Squadron (25th Bombardment Group) 23 November 1943 until 24 March 1944
• 4th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron (Antilles Air Command) 21 May until 5 October 1945

Renamed Coolidge Air Force Base (Coolidge AFB) in 1948, it was closed as a result of budgetary cutbacks in 1949, with the right of re-entry retained by the United States. Agreements were subsequently reached with the United Kingdom and, later, the Antigua government upon independence, for the establishment and maintenance of missile tracking facilities. Antigua Air Station was established on a portion of the former Coolidge AFB. As of 2011^[update], NASA continues to utilize the Antigua facility for launch tracking services on an as-needed basis; and did so for the launch of the Mars Science Laboratory on 26 November 2011.^[4]

Upon the closure of the base in 1949, it became a civil airport. It was known as Coolidge International Airport until 1985 when it was named in honour of Sir Vere Cornwall Bird (1909–1999), the first prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda.^{[citation needed]}

In December 2005, the Antigua and Barbuda Millennium Airport Corporation announced it would invite tenders to construct the first phase of a new passenger terminal designed to serve the airport for 30 years. In 2012, they announced the construction of its second terminal.^{[citation needed]}

The new terminal became operational on 26 August 2015. All flights operate from the new facility. The terminal covers 23,000 square meters (247,570 square feet), with four jet bridges, modern security screening facilities, up-to-date passenger processing and monitoring facilities, and a CCTV security system. It contains 46 check-in counters, 15 self-check-in kiosks, 5 baggage carousels, a mini food court, multiple VIP lounges, a bank, retail stores, first-class lounges, restaurants, and other facilities. Other improvements included a newly constructed car park; parallel to the old terminal, along with other airport offices.^[5]

In May 2025 it was announced that the old terminal would be renovated to support cruise home-porting operations at the harbour in St. John's. The old terminal is expected to reopen as a new second terminal in late 2025.^[6]

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

Airlines	Destinations
Air Canada Rouge	Toronto–Pearson
American Airlines	Miami, New York–JFK Seasonal: Charlotte[citation needed]
Anguilla Air Services	Anguilla[7]
BMN Air	Barbuda, Montserrat
British Airways	Aruba,[8] London–Gatwick, Saint Kitts Seasonal: Grenada[citation needed]
CalvinAir Helicopters	Barbuda, Dominica–Canefield, Montserrat, Nevis, Saint Kitts
Caribbean Airlines	Barbados, Dominica–Douglas-Charles,[9] Kingston–Norman Manley, Port of Spain, Saint Kitts,[10] San Juan,[11] Tortola[11]
Condor	Seasonal: Frankfurt[12][13]
Delta Air Lines	Atlanta Seasonal: New York–JFK[14]
FlyMontserrat	Barbuda, Montserrat, Nevis
Frontier Airlines	San Juan[15]
InterCaribbean Airways	Barbados, Providenciales, Tortola[16]
JetBlue	New York–JFK
LIAT20	Barbuda,[17] Castries, Georgetown–Cheddi Jagan,[18] Kingston–Norman Manley,[19] Port of Spain,[20] Saint Vincent–Argyle,[21] Tortola[22]
Norse Atlantic Airways[23]	Seasonal charter: London–Gatwick,[citation needed] Manchester (UK)[citation needed]
Sky High	Santo Domingo–Las Americas
St Barth Commuter	Saint Barthelemy[citation needed]
Sunrise Airways	Barbados[24] Castries,[25] Dominica–Douglas-Charles,[26] Fort-de-France,[24] Grenada,[24] Pointe-à-Pitre,[24] Port-au-Prince,[27] Saint Kitts,[28] Saint Vincent–Argyle,[24] Santo Domingo–Las Americas,[24] Sint Maarten,[29] Tortola[24]
SVG Air	Dominica–Canefield[30][31]
Tradewind Aviation	Anguilla,[32] Saint Barthelemy
United Airlines	Newark
VI Airlink	Tortola
Virgin Atlantic	London–Heathrow
WestJet	Toronto–Pearson
Winair	Dominica–Douglas-Charles, Montserrat, Saint Barthelemy, Saint Kitts, Sint Maarten, Tortola

Cargo

Airlines	Destinations
Air Cargo Carriers	Dominica–Douglas-Charles
Ameriflight	Dominica–Douglas-Charles, San Juan
Amerijet International	Miami
DHL Aviation	Dominica–Douglas-Charles, San Juan, Sint Maarten
FedEx Feeder	Dominica–Douglas-Charles, San Juan

Ground transportation

Taxis and rental cars are available at the airport, although there is no public bus service.

Other facilities

• The Antigua Outstation of the Eastern Caribbean Civil Aviation Authority is on the airport property.^[33]
• The airport includes a mural by Heather Doram, designer of Antigua and Barbuda's national costume.^[34]

Statistics

The airport was opened on 20 August 2015, and has a processing capacity of 1,700 passengers. The airport is open 24 hours a day and is serviced by more than 17 airlines.^[35]

Accidents and incidents

• On 10 May 2004, a LIAT de Havilland Canada DHC-8-311 flight made an emergency landing after one of its wheels fell off shortly after takeoff. The flight operated by the Antigua-based airline had departed from St. Maarten en route to St. Kitts when one of its wheels reportedly fell off. The Dash 8-311 turboprop was diverted to Antigua and was able to land safely on its three remaining wheels, without causing damage to the aircraft. None of the 24 passengers and three crew members were injured.
• On 12 November 2008, a LIAT de Havilland Canada DHC-8-311 circled V. C. Bird International Airport in Antigua following reports of landing gear malfunction. The de Havilland Dash 8 -311 aircraft should have landed at the Robert Bradshaw International Airport in St Kitts but was diverted to Antigua because of the problem. It turned out that the landing gear was in order, but the indicators in the cockpit gave a reading that there was a fault. Firefighters, medical personnel and police were on alert but, after clearance, the aircraft landed safely with its 42 passengers and three crew members.
• On 7 October 2012, FlyMontserrat Flight 107, a FlyMontserrat Britten-Norman Islander took off and later crashed a few feet off the runway, killing the pilot and 2 of the 3 passengers on board.^[36] due to significant contamination of the aircraft's fuel by water.^[37]