Cabo Verde boasts of very rich history and cultural heritage, just like many other African nations. Almost every location in our country has a significant meaning and link to the historical evolution of our people. Today, we’ll take somewhat of an in-depth look into most of our visitors’ first point of entry into beautiful Cabo Verde; it is Amilcar Cabral International Airport.
Amilcar Cabral International airport is also known as Sal International Airport. It is the main international airport of Cabo Verde. The airport is named after Cabo Verdean revolutionary leader Amílcar Cabral.
Amilcar Cabral was a Bissau-Guinean and Cabo Verdean agricultural engineer, intellectual, poet, theoretician, revolutionary, political organizer, nationalist and diplomat. He was one of Africa's foremost anti-colonial leaders.
Cabral led the nationalist movement of Guinea-Bissau and the Cabo Verde Islands during the fight for independence and the ensuing war of independence in Guinea-Bissau. He was assassinated on the 20th of January 1973, about 8 months before Guinea-Bissau's unilateral declaration of independence.
Although not a Marxist, he was deeply influenced by Marxism and became an inspiration to revolutionary socialists and national independence movements worldwide. Cabral was born on the 12th September 1924 in Bafata, Guinea-Bissau to a Cabo Verdean mother and a Guinea-Bissau father both from Santiago, Cabo Verde.
The first airport on Cabo Verde’s Sal Island was built in 1939 by Italy, as a fuel and provisions stopping-point on routes from Europe to South America. As a result of World War II, the Italian involvement in the airport project stopped. After World War II, the Portuguese colonial government purchased the airport from Italy and by 1949 the airport was fully operational.
Only Brazilian and Portuguese citizens or foreigners with permanent residence in Brazil or Portugal could purchase tickets for those flights, which were extremely popular due to their low fares. At this time, Cape Verde was a Portuguese Overseas Province and therefore part of the territory of Portugal. Until September 2005, it was the only airport in Cape Verde to serve international flights.
Now in Cabo Verde, there are 3 International airports due to infrastructural development for the convenience of tourists but the Amilcar Cabral airport remains the most popular and biggest.
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