So You Think You Know Airport Codes? Test Your Knowledge. Part Thirteen.

So you think you know airport codes? Well, you are about to find out.

This is the thirteenth of a series of articles here at The Gate with which you could have some fun at testing your knowledge pertaining to airport codes — and although the first twelve articles had been increasing in difficulty, subsequent articles will continue to do so as they delve into airports which are smaller and lesser known…

So You Think You Know Airport Codes? Test Your Knowledge. Part Thirteen.

…but first, here is a little history about airport codes…

The International Civil Aviation Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations, established by States in 1944 to manage the administration and governance of the Convention on International Civil Aviation, which is also known as the Chicago Convention.

Airport codes designated by the International Civil Aviation Organization are comprised of four letters. The first letter generally designates a specific region; while the second letter may designate a more finite region in many areas.

For example, K is used for the continental United States — such as KATL for Atlanta and KLAS for Las Vegas — but P is used for Alaska, Hawaii, and other territories of the United States in the northern Pacific Ocean. Examples include PANC for Anchorage, PHNL for Honolulu, and PGUM for Guam.

S represents all of South America — for example, SAEZ is Buenos Aires. Y represents all of Australia — for example, YSSY for Sydney.

International Air Transport Association

The International Air Transport Association represents, leads, and serves the airline industry to improve understanding of the air transport industry among decision makers and increase awareness of the benefits that aviation brings to national and global economies. Advocating for the interests of airlines across the globe, we challenge unreasonable rules and charges, hold regulators and governments to account, and strive for sensible regulation.

Codes for airports and railway stations are comprised of three letters as designated by the International Air Transport Association. The three letters can simply represent the geographic location of the airport or railway station — or they could be based on the history or founding of the airport or railway station.

In the United States and Canada, International Air Transport Association codes are typically based on International Civil Aviation Organization codes. In the United States, the only difference between the codes is the addition of the letter K — for example as mentioned before, ATL for Atlanta is KATL and LAS for Las Vegas is KLAS. In Canada, the only difference between the codes is the addition of the letter C — for example, YYZ for Toronto is CYYZ and YVR for Vancouver is CYVR.

For most other airports around the world, International Civil Aviation Organization codes and International Air Transport Association do not resemble each other — for example:

• JNB for Johannesburg is FAJS
• FCO for Rome is LIRF
• NRT for Tokyo is RJAA
• EZE for Buenos Aires is SAEZ
• AKL for Auckland is NZAA

Airport Codes

Here are 50 additional airport codes which continue this series of articles:

1. PMD
2. RKC
3. RCE
4. WWD
5. PAQ
6. PLB
7. ODW
8. FNL
9. FPY
10. EEK
11. DLG
12. GLH
13. AFN
14. AGO
15. AHH
16. HSI
17. IAN
18. CDR
19. DAN
20. BET
21. AFO
22. WBU
23. MNM
24. MUE
25. MKC
26. PWT
27. SVA
28. SWD
29. HPB
30. HUM
31. FRM
32. DUT
33. AID
34. AKI
35. BKX
36. BEH
37. CDK
38. SXQ
39. WRG
40. ORT
41. MOU
42. MDH
43. MBL
44. MCK
45. KIP
46. FIL
47. AKC
48. AHD
49. ACB
50. ADK

Final Boarding Call

The articles are not meant to be an exhaustive list of airport codes — but they will highlight at least 600 of them, including:

• So You Think You Know Airport Codes? Test Your Knowledge. Part One.
• So You Think You Know Airport Codes? Test Your Knowledge. Part Two.
• So You Think You Know Airport Codes? Test Your Knowledge. Part Three.
• So You Think You Know Airport Codes? Test Your Knowledge. Part Four.
• So You Think You Know Airport Codes? Test Your Knowledge. Part Five.
• So You Think You Know Airport Codes? Test Your Knowledge. Part Six.
• So You Think You Know Airport Codes? Test Your Knowledge. Part Seven.
• So You Think You Know Airport Codes? Test Your Knowledge. Part Eight.
• Airportle: So You Think You Know Airport Codes? Test Your Knowledge With This Game. Part Nine.
• So You Think You Know Airport Codes? Test Your Knowledge. Part Ten.
• So You Think You Know Airport Codes? Test Your Knowledge. Part Eleven.
• So You Think You Know Airport Codes? Test Your Knowledge. Part Twelve.

You could test your knowledge of airport codes off the top of your head…

…or you could simply refer to this article which was posted here at The Gate back on Saturday, June 6, 2020 and find the answers using the tools which are highlighted there — but really: what is the fun in that?

All photographs ©2007, ©2008, ©2016, ©2017, and ©2022 by Brian Cohen.