Kasese Airstrip serves as a gateway to nearby tourist destinations and also supports general aviation, including charter and private flights in Kasese District. It is managed by the Uganda Civil Aviation Authority. This airstrip is one of the well-known in the country and is approved to handle cross-border air traffic from member countries of the East African Community, with the aim of promoting tourism.
It also receives daily domestic flights from Entebbe International Airport, where most tourists first land before continuing to their final destinations. Flights also come from Kajjansi Airfield and Murchison Falls National Park.
Kasese Airstrip has a single grass runway that is 1,600 meters (5,249 feet) long and 30 meters wide. It sits at an elevation of 959 meters above sea level. The Civil Aviation Authority has future plans to improve the airstrip by lengthening and widening the runway, changing it to tarmac, and building a terminal, fuel storage, and customs and immigration facilities to support smooth operations.
Back in 2008, some of these plans had already started. Construction began with the relocation of tenants who previously occupied the land, with the aim of turning the airstrip into an international airport. In July 2013, Uganda’s print media reported that renovations would begin in mid-2014, a plan that was confirmed by President Yoweri Museveni during a regional tourism conference in Kampala.
The airstrip is located 4 kilometers from Kasese Town and close to the border of the Democratic Republic of Congo, making it a strategic entry and exit point. Visitors enjoy a comfortable journey while viewing the nearby Rwenzori Mountains, which include the highest peaks in Uganda at 5,109 meters above sea level.
Travelers departing from Entebbe International Airport usually leave at 7:00 am and arrive in Kasese at 10:00 am. The return flight leaves Kasese at 10:20 am and arrives back at 11:25 am. Another flight leaves Entebbe at 10:15 am and arrives at 12:05 pm. The return flight departs at 12:20 pm and arrives at 1:30 pm. An additional afternoon flight runs from 12:00 pm to 2:35 pm, with the return from Kasese departing at 2:55 pm and landing at 3:55 pm.
Please reconfirm with the current schedule as schedules always change.
