In 2007 it was the 15th busiest airport in West Africa in passenger volume, just ahead of Port Harcourt (Nigeria) and behind Banjul (Gambia).

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.

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.

Generally 3,000 m (9,800 ft) is sufficient to land virtually any aircraft at sea level, but longer runways are helpful for heavily loaded cargo planes.