Nouakchott–Oumtounsy International Airport — Nouakchott, Mauritania

Mauritania's capital replaced its old in-town airport with Nouakchott-Oumtounsy International in 2016, moving air traffic away from a facility that had become hemmed in by urban growth along the Atlantic coast. NKC now handles the country's international connections from a site north of the city center, serving a capital that has expanded dramatically from a small colonial-era town into a Saharan metropolis of well over a million people within a few decades. Nouakchott sits at the meeting point of desert and ocean, with the Sahara pressing against the city's edges even as fishing fleets work the rich Atlantic waters offshore, and the airport supports both the fishing and mining-related trade that anchor Mauritania's economy alongside a still-modest tourism sector. Regional and European connections remain limited compared to larger African capitals, but the newer facility offers considerably more capacity and modern infrastructure than its predecessor could provide as the country pursues gradual economic diversification beyond raw commodity exports.