Altamira Interstate Airport
Altamira Interstate Airport (ATM)
Located in the central-south region of Pará, in the north of the country, Altamira is more than 800 kilometers from Belém, the state capital, and is located on the banks of the Xingu River, with its series of creeks and waterfalls distributed throughout the region. Since 2011, when work began on installing the Belo Monte hydroelectric plant, considered the third largest plant in the world and built in the Xingu River basin, the airport has recorded a significant increase in the number of passengers.
On November 30, 2023, Altamira Interstate Airport (SBHT) began to be managed by Aena Brasil, after the concessionaire purchased a block of 11 Brazilian airport terminals in an auction by the National Civil Aviation Agency (Anac) held in 2022. As it already manages, since 2020, six units in the Northeast, Aena Brasil runs, in total, 17 airports in the country. The company is part of the Spanish company Aena, considered the largest airport operator in the world in terms of number of passengers.
Altamira airport handles domestic flights, acting as an important entry and exit point for the Transamazônica region. Altamirenses have had the option of air transport since 1950, when the first local airport was created, with a dirt floor and a commercial airline established by the now extinct Panair do Brasil.
The Belém-Manaus route was made in a twin-engine seaplane, the CatalinaPBY, with 16 seats, which landed on the Xingu River, in front of the city. At the same time, on an area donated by the city hall, construction began on the new runway, under the responsibility of the Amazon Basin Airports Commission (Comara), a military organization of the Air Force Command.
The first landing on the Xingu River, however, was shortly after the 1930 Revolution, when a Panair seaplane landed in Altamira, with the State intervener, Major Magalhães Barata. Throughout the 1940s, during World War II, American seaplanes landed on the Xingu River bringing supplies for latex extraction operations, which would produce natural rubber for the allied army.
During the construction of the Transamazônica, which opened in the 1970s, the number of flights increased, and the runway needed to be extended and paved to meet demand. In 1979, Altamira opened its new airport, which had a paved runway and a modern passenger terminal.
The 1980s were marked by the incorporation of the unit into Infraero, precisely on January 17, 1980, and a partial renovation of the landing and takeoff runway, in 1986. In 2011 and 2012, new renovations made the runway capable of supporting larger aircrafts.
The 1980s were marked by the incorporation of the unit into Infraero, precisely on January 17, 1980, and a partial renovation of the landing and takeoff runway, in 1986. In 2011 and 2012, new renovations made the runway capable of supporting larger aircrafts.
Another intervention that deserves to be highlighted was the expansion of the airport's passenger terminal, in 2023, which provided an increase in the physical space of the departure, arrival and lobby areas, in addition to the installation of accessible toilets in the terminal's three areas.
During the next 30 years, the concession period, Aena Brasil will modernize the Altamira Interstate Airport and prepare the unit for the demands of the present and future, guaranteeing increasingly comfort and safety for its users.