Thomas Sankara International Airport Ouagadougou

According to a 2012 article in the Washington Post, the United States military was using the military side of the airport as the hub of its airborne intelligence operations for much of Western Africa. Its surveillance operations were carried out mainly with small, unarmed turboprop aircraft disguised as private planes, but full of surveillance equipment. The U.S. spy planes fly hundreds of kilometres north to Mali, Mauritania and the Sahara, where they search for Al-Qaida fighters from the Maghreb. The planes refuel on isolated airstrips favored by African bush pilots, extending their effective flight range by thousands of kilometres. According to the Washington Post, in 2012 Ouagadougou was the most important of the approximately dozen air bases that the U.S. established in Africa since 2007. ==Plans for a new airport==

The government plans to close the current airport upon construction of the Ouagadougou-Donsin Airport, approximately northeast of Ouagadougou near the village of Donsin. It was originally expected to be completed around 2018, and the government of Burkina Faso has an $85 million loan from the World Bank to help finance the construction. for completion in 2025. == Accidents and incidents ==

• On September 17, 2013, a standing ATR 72-202 (EC-LNP) of Colombe Air Line leased from Helitt Lineas Aereas was substantially damaged when a heavy thunderstorm passed over the airport, with winds up to 44 knots (50.6 mph) being registered at 20:00. The plane was written off. == References ==