Kosipe Airport (KSP)

Kosipe Airport (KSP), also known by its ICAO code AYOP, is a remote domestic airstrip located in the Goilala District of Central Province, Papua New Guinea. Situated at a high elevation of approximately 6,350 feet within the Owen Stanley Range, the facility primarily serves the Kosipe Mission and the surrounding rural communities. The airport features a single, unpaved grass-and-dirt runway that spans roughly 600 meters and is strictly restricted to Day Visual Flight Rules (VFR) operations due to the challenging mountainous terrain and rapidly changing weather conditions. The "terminal" at Kosipe is essentially a basic, open-air outpost, reflecting its role as a remote mission airstrip. There is no enclosed passenger terminal building or modern aviation infrastructure; instead, travelers typically wait in open areas or near the mission buildings for the arrival of their flights. Check-in and cargo handling are managed manually by local mission staff or the pilots themselves, and there are no commercial shops, restaurants, or conventional security screening facilities typical of larger urban airports. Flight operations at KSP are almost exclusively conducted via charter services and missionary aviation providers, such as Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) or Tropicair, using short-takeoff and landing (STOL) aircraft like the Cessna Caravan. These flights are vital for the transport of supplies, medical evacuations, and missionary travel, connecting the isolated region to the national capital at Jacksons International Airport (POM) in Port Moresby. Ground transportation on the island is limited to foot or pre-arranged local transport, with no formal taxi or bus services operating at the airfield.