Julius Nyerere International Airport

Julius Nyerere International Airport is the international airport of Dar es Salaam, the largest city in Tanzania. It is located in Kipawa ward of Ilala District in Dar es Salaam Region of Tanzania. The airport has flights to destinations in Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. It is named after Julius Nyerere (1922Ã¢ÂÂ1999), the nation's first president.

History

In October 2005, "Dar es Salaam International Airport" (DIA) was renamed "Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere International Airport" and on 1 November 2006, "Julius Nyerere International Airport". A total of 9,501,265 passengers used the airport from 1980 to 2004, averaging 2,770 per day.

In April 2013, the Tanzania Airports Authority signed a TSH 275 billion contract with BAM International of the Netherlands for the construction of the first phase of Terminal III, with a capacity of 3.5 million passengers per year. In November 2015, the second phase was also awarded to BAM, at a contract price of US$110 million, and will add capacity for an additional 2.5 million passengers per year. After completion of Terminal III, it is expected that Terminal II will be devoted only to domestic passengers. It is proposed to build a rail shuttle link from the airport to the city, and rail coaches had been bought, as of 2014.

The new Terminal 3 was constructed using domestic funding, and started operations in August 2019. In October 2022, it was announced that Terminal 2 was ready to be renovated soon by the Government of Tanzania. In February 2022, Tanzania Airports Authority announced their plans of developing a four-star hotel and commercial complex at Julius Nyerere International Airport (JNIA).

Terminals

There are three terminals at Dar es Salaam airport.

Terminal 1 mainly used for private, charter, and small aircraft flights. In January 2026, a new VIP terminal was mainly built to serve high-profile and state passengers.

Terminal 2 is used for domestic and regional scheduled flights. It has a capacity of handling 1.5 million passengers. In 2024, it was announced that the terminal is set for major renovation, with plans to transform it into a modern national hub for Air Tanzania capable of handling traffic of up to 3.5 million passengers.

Terminal 3 is the newest terminal that opened in August 2019. It is used for International flights. The terminal consists of two phases, Phase I and II. There are 58 businesses in the terminal categorized under retail, operational machines and provision of services.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

The following passenger airlines operate at the airport:

Cargo

Statistics

Accidents and incidents

On 3 January 1950, a United Air Services flight, flying an Avro Anson C.19 with registration VP-TAT, crash-landed at Dar es Salaam International Airport, killing both crew members.
On 18 May 1989, an Aeroflot flight flying an Ilyushin 62 was hijacked by a South African after the plane took off from Luanda, Angola. The hijacker was armed with a grenade and attempted to hold hostage the occupants of the plane that carried members of the African National Congress. The hijacker was shot by a security guard as he attempted to enter the cockpit. The plane continued its scheduled stop at Dar es Salaam International Airport.
On 11 April 2014, Kenya Airways flight KQ-482 flying an Embraer ERJ-190AR had an accident upon landing in heavy rains. The plane veered off the runway. All passengers and crew were evacuated. There were no reported fatalities, and three passengers sustained minor injuries.