OR Tambo International Airport - Information South Africa

OR Tambo International Airport in Kempton Park, Ekurhuleni is the largest and busiest airport in Africa. A thoroughly modern and state-of-the-art airport OR Tambo International handles more than 19 million passengers per year and employs more than 18,000 people.

OR Tambo International is Africa’s gateway to the world. No other airport in Africa can handle as many domestic and international flights and the airport boasts one of the world’s longest international runways. All of the world’s major airlines land at OR Tambo International and you can catch a flight to any regional and most international destinations from the airport.

The airport was founded as Jan Smuts International Airport in 1952, replacing Palmietfontein International Airport that had handled European flights to South Africa since 1945. With South Africa’s transition to democracy in 1994, the name was changed to Johannesburg International Airport and on October 27, 2006, the airport was renamed again in honour of the anti-apartheid activist and former African National Congress president Oliver Tambo. Ahead of the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ the airport underwent a major facelift to increase handling capacity, parking and retail space.

OR Tambo International has two terminals handling domestic and international flights. Terminal A handles international traffic and Terminal B domestic flights. Both terminals consist of two levels, with departures on the upper level and arrivals on the lower.

OR Tambo International Airport, IATA Code: JNB and often shortened to ORTIA, lies 5,558 ft / 1,694 m above sea level in the Johannesburg suburb of Kempton Park, 23 km east of Johannesburg city centre and 46km south of Pretoria.

There is no shortage of shopping opportunities for visitors at OR Tambo International Airport and it easily compares with some of Johannesburg’s bigger malls in terms of shopping and dining options, both before and after you pass through security.

South Africa has extremely good cell phone network coverage and the country’s leading cell phone network operators have stores at the airport offering cell phone rentals. There are also four currency exchange offices – Absa, Rennies, Master Currency and American Express, where you can also cash traveller’s cheques.

Accommodation in Kempton Park

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