TownWingZA · KM
PLZ ICAO FAPEEastern Cape

Chief Dawid Stuurman International Airport

Chief Dawid Stuurman International Airport (PLZ / FAPE)—formerly Port Elizabeth International Airport—is the primary commercial passenger airport for Gqeberha (4 km) and Nelson Mandela Bay in the Eastern Cape.

SERVICE STATUS
Passenger flights — check your travel date
Serves: Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth)
Elevation: 226 ft (69 m)
Coords: -33.9897°, 25.6174°
CLOSEST IN DATASET

Six closest towns to Chief Dawid Stuurman International Airport

Straight-line Haversine distances from PLZ to the six nearest South African cities and towns in the 60-destination TownWing dataset.

Gqeberha
Eastern Cape
3 km→
Jeffreys Bay
Eastern Cape
64 km→
Port Alfred
Eastern Cape
125 km→
Cradock
Eastern Cape
203 km→
Plettenberg Bay
Western Cape
207 km→
Knysna
Western Cape
237 km→
ALL 60 DESTINATIONS

Check distance to another town

Select any of the 60 South African destinations to see its straight-line distance from Chief Dawid Stuurman International Airport (PLZ).

PLZ↔Knysna
237 km

Straight-line distance between Chief Dawid Stuurman International Airport and the Knysna reference coordinate in Western Cape.

Compare passenger airports near Knysna →

Where PLZ fits into Eastern Cape and Garden Route travel

Operated by ACSA and served by domestic carriers including Airlink and FlySafair, PLZ sits in the southern suburb of Walmer within minutes of central Gqeberha and the Algoa Bay beachfront. Beyond the metro, it is the #1 closest airport in our 18-airport passenger comparison for Jeffreys Bay (66 km west), Port Alfred (126 km east), and Cradock (203 km north in the Karoo).

Travellers planning an eastern Garden Route or Sunshine Coast itinerary frequently compare PLZ with George Airport (GRJ) (299 km west along the N2) for stays around Plettenberg Bay and Knysna, or with King Phalo Airport (ELS) in East London (237 km northeast along the R72/N2) when visiting Port Alfred or the Karoo interior.

Arrival, rental cars and onward road corridors from PLZ

Because the terminal sits close to Gqeberha’s residential and beachfront suburbs, airport transfers into Summerstrand, Humewood, and central Nelson Mandela Bay are short urban drives compared with out-of-town hubs.

If you are collecting a rental car at PLZ for a longer drive west on the N2 toward Tsitsikamma, north on the N10 toward Cradock and Addo, or east on the R72 toward Port Alfred, confirm your airline arrival time and vehicle desk hours before departure.

REGIONAL ALTERNATIVES

Other passenger airports in the region

The three closest passenger-comparison airports to Chief Dawid Stuurman International Airport (PLZ) measured airport-to-airport by straight line.

ELS231 km

King Phalo Airport

Serves East London · Eastern Cape
Passenger flights · check dates
GRJ299 km

George Airport

Serves George · Western Cape
Passenger flights · check dates
UTT394 km

K. D. Matanzima Airport

Serves Mthatha · Eastern Cape
Passenger flights · check dates
TECHNICAL REFERENCE

Airport facts

Airport name
Chief Dawid Stuurman International Airport
IATA / ICAO / Ident
PLZ / FAPE / FAPE
GPS / Local code
FAPE / —
Municipality & province
Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth), Eastern Cape (ZA-EC)
Passenger service status
Passenger flights — check your travel date
Airport role
Passenger airport
Elevation
226 ft (69 m)
Coordinates
-33.9897° S, 25.6174° E
Map reference
Open in Google Maps ↗
RUNWAY DATA

Runways at PLZ

Recorded runway dimensions, surface codes, and lighting status from the OurAirports dataset. For general planning context only — not for flight operations.

2 runways recorded
RunwayLengthWidthSurfaceLighted
08/262,160 m (7,087 ft) 46 m (151 ft) ASPYes
17/351,677 m (5,502 ft) 46 m (151 ft) ASPYes
PROVENANCE & VERIFICATION

Updated & sources

Dataset snapshot: 2026-11-06 · Passenger service review: 2026-11-06 · Profile review: 2026-11-06