<h2 class="blog-hed2 pb-lg-4 pb-3 text-lg-center">HHistory of Christmas Island International Airport</h2>
<p class="blog-para">From the late 1940s, when the island was still a British colony administered by Singapore and the Straits Settlements Administration, it was serviced occasionally by Royal Air Force (RAF) Short Sunderland flying boats before the construction of the airport.</p>
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<li class="blog-li"><strong>Tampa crisis: </strong>A brief revival of the "old days" happened in 2001 during the Tampa crisis when the heightened Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) traffic was complemented by a large number of Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) and media charters. During this incident, traffic at the airport is said to have been "near-continuous".</li>
<li class="blog-li"><strong>Satellite launch facility: </strong>After the closure of the casino, the resort was taken over by the Asia Pacific Space Centre, which developed plans for a satellite launch facility on Christmas Island. The company, with solid financial participation from the Australian Government, had planned to start satellite launches in 2004.Technical staff was to include 350-400 Russian rocket scientists and engineers, and componentry was to be flown in on Antonov An-124 and Boeing 747 freighters. To achieve this, the airport would need major extensions, and the Government allocated around A$55m to the task. This included a 600 m (1,969 ft) runway extension, plus additional taxiways, apron space, and other infrastructure.</li>
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<h2 class="blog-hed2 pb-lg-4 pb-3">Transportation from Christmas Island International Airport</h2>
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<li class="blog-li"><strong>Runway: </strong>The airport resides at an elevation of 916 ft (279 m) above sea level. It has one runway designated 18/36 with an asphalt surface measuring 2,103 m &amp; 45 m (6,900 ft &amp; 148 ft). and a 2.3% mid-runway gradient.</li>
<li class="blog-li"><strong>RunwayTraffic: </strong>Traffic to and from the airport varies greatly. Along with regular flights to the Australian mainland, the airport receives weekly open charter flights from Jakarta with Garuda Indonesia and fortnightly open charter flights from Kuala Lumpur with Batik Air Malaysia. Historically airlines such as Indonesia AirAsia, Malaysia Airlines and SilkAir travelled to the island. Tourist attractions such as the migration of the Christmas Island red crab and the island's Christmas Island Resort have caused spikes in traffic levels. The construction of an immigration detention centre on the island resulted in a temporary increase in RAAF and DIMIA arrivals.</li>
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<p><img class="img-fluid p-lg-0 rounded w-100" title="History of Christmas Island International Airport" src="../../main/img/airport/ci/1.webp" alt="History of Christmas Island International Airport " width="950px" height="500px"></p>