# Aktau Airport (SCO)

> Aktau, KZ · IATA: SCO · ICAO: UATE · Medium Airport · Cargo Hub

## Quick Facts

| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| IATA | `SCO` |
| ICAO | `UATE` |
| City | Aktau |
| Country | KZ |
| Type | Medium Airport |
| Elevation | 22 m |
| Cargo | ✅ |
| GPS | 43.86009, 51.09086 |

## Description

A 3,048-metre by 45-metre runway, rebuilt to accept aircraft as large as the Boeing 747, sets the practical limits of what Aktau International (SCO/UATE) can do in air cargo. The airport lies roughly 21 km north-west of Aktau on Kazakhstan's Caspian coast and runs a cargo terminal of about 2,500 m² rated at up to 600 tonnes of throughput per day, with warehousing for general cargo and mail. Traffic is dominated by industrial goods, drilling and process equipment linked to the Mangystau oil and gas sector; no permanently based freighter operator is confirmed, so most consignments move as belly cargo on scheduled services. Actual tonnage stays modest because the adjacent Aktau seaport and rail connections offer cheaper Trans-Caspian routings, leaving air freight to time-critical spares and project equipment. By overall traffic Aktau ranks third in Kazakhstan behind Almaty and Astana. In September 2025 the Mangystau regional administration announced a logistics and aviation hub project worth around USD 1 billion at the airport, designed to tie air operations to sea, rail and road along the Middle Corridor. Shippers needing wide-body freighter capacity normally route via Almaty (ALA) or Astana (NQZ), with Baku (GYD) a workable alternative across the Caspian.

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*Freight Academy — Airport Profile: [https://www.freight-academy.com/en/information/airports/aktau-airport-sco](https://www.freight-academy.com/en/information/airports/aktau-airport-sco)*

*Markdown mirror: [https://www.freight-academy.com/api/md/airports/en/aktau-airport-sco](https://www.freight-academy.com/api/md/airports/en/aktau-airport-sco)*

*LLM-Summary (JSON): https://www.freight-academy.com/api/v1/airports/aktau-airport-sco/llm-summary*