King Shaka International Airport , abbreviated KSIA, is the primary airport serving Durban, South Africa. Located in La Mercy, KwaZulu-Natal, approximately 35 km north of the city centre of Durban, it opened its doors to passengers on 1 May 2010, just over a month before the start of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. It replaced Durban International Airport and uses the same IATA airport code. The airport was designed by Osmond Lange Architects and Planners and cost R6,800,000,000 . In spite of the high costs, the airport was designed without a viewing deck and travelators.Although the larger airport was built to grow the area's international services, it is also a key airport for domestic services throughout South Africa, serving the Golden Triangle between Cape Town International Airport , O. R. Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg, and KSIA itself with 7 airlines. KSIA was the 9th busiest airport in Africa according to 2010 statistics, despite not being open for the first four months.The airport forms part of the Dube TradePort, which will additionally consist of a trade zone linked to the airport's cargo terminal, facilities to support the airport such as nearby offices and transit accommodation for tourists, an integrated agricultural export zone, and an IT platform.The largest aircraft KSIA currently has scheduled services for is the Boeing 777-300ER, with both Emirates operating Dubai–Durban & Qatar Airways operating Doha–Durban, despite the fact that KSIA's runway length and terminal were designed to theoretically handle regular large airliners. In September 2015, during the World Routes Conference which was held in Durban , Turkish Airlines announced a new international service to Istanbul and Qatar Airways announced the commencement of service to Doha in December of that year.On 27 January 2014 the world's largest passenger aircraft, an Airbus A380-800 of British Airways landed at KSIA becoming the first A380 to do so. The aircraft was being used for training and operated many flights in and out of the airport until 4 February 2014. The aircraft also returned for further pilot training between 29 August and 1 September the same year.
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