Petrolina Airport
Airport
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Petrolina–Senador Nilo Coelho International Airport (IATA: PNZ, ICAO: SBPL) is the airport serving Petrolina, Pernambuco and Juazeiro, Bahia, Brazil. Since July 8, 2002 it is named after the Petrolina-born Senator Nilo de Sousa Coelho (1920–1983).[5]
Petrolina–Senador Nilo Coelho International Airport Aeroporto Internacional de Petrolina–Senador Nilo Coelho | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||
| Operator | |||||||||||
| Serves | Petrolina / Juazeiro | ||||||||||
| Opened | 28 October 1981 | ||||||||||
| Time zone | BRT (UTC−03:00) | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 386 m / 1,263 ft | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 09°22′03″S 040°33′49″W | ||||||||||
| Website | aeroportos | ||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||
  PNZ Location in Brazil | |||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||
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| Statistics (2025) | |||||||||||
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| Statistics: Motiva[1] Sources: Airport Website,[2] ANAC,[3] DECEA[4] | |||||||||||
It is operated by Motiva.
History
Petrolina Airport handles the export of fresh fruits from the São Francisco valley to Europe and the United States. The cargo terminal operates with 6 large coolers with capacity for 17,000 boxes each plus 2 cooler tunnels.[6] Cargolux flies cargo configurated-Boeing 747 aircraft into the airport.
Previously operated by Infraero, on April 7, 2021 CCR won a 30-year concession to operate the airport.[7] On April 26, 2025 CCR was rebranded as Motiva.[8]
On November 18, 2025 the entire airports portfolio of Motiva was sold to the Mexican airport operator ASUR. Motiva will cease to operate airports.[9] On February 10, 2026 the transaction was still pending government approval.
Airlines and destinations
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Azul Brazilian Airlines | Campinas, Recife |
| Gol Linhas Aéreas | Salvador da Bahia[10] |
| LATAM Brasil | Recife (begins 2 September 2026),[11] São Paulo–Guarulhos |
Access
The airport is located 9 km (6 mi) from downtown Petrolina and 15 km (9 mi) from downtown Juazeiro. The main access is made by the BR-235 roadway west of downtown Petrolina.
