# Diego Aracena Airport (IQQ)

> Iquique, CL · IATA: IQQ · ICAO: SCDA · Medium Airport · Cargo Hub

## Quick Facts

| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| IATA | `IQQ` |
| ICAO | `SCDA` |
| City | Iquique |
| Country | CL |
| Type | Medium Airport |
| Elevation | 47 m |
| Cargo | ✅ |
| GPS | -20.53520, -70.18130 |

## Description

Iquique's free-trade zone, ZOFRI, established in 1975, is the reason Diego Aracena Airport (IATA: IQQ, ICAO: SCDA) exists in its modern form: the zone turned the port city into one of South America's main commercial centres and lifted both cargo and passenger traffic. The airport lies on the Pacific coast 48 km south of Iquique and shares its runway with the Los Cóndores air base. ZOFRI's bonded warehouses handle duty-free storage and re-export, linking Asian manufacturing with Andean and Mercosur markets; most of that volume arrives by sea through the port, while air freight adds speed for high-value and time-critical goods, moving as belly load on scheduled flights plus occasional charters. Under the Chilean public works ministry's fourth concession, the passenger terminal is being expanded from 8,400 to 19,160 square metres with two new jet bridges and a larger apron, and the project also provides for a new cargo terminal in the eastern Depocar sector, separating freight handling from passenger operations for the first time. As the second-busiest airport in northern Chile, IQQ blends business travel with regional cargo flows, complemented by Antofagasta (ANF) and Calama (CJC) for mining supply. Intercontinental main-deck freight is still consolidated through Santiago (SCL).

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

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

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