General aviation · training · recreational
RKT is a controlled H24 field with a 3,760-metre runway, a dedicated general aviation apron and a flight academy based on it. It is not a grass strip, and it is not the club field down the road — which is the first thing a visiting light pilot needs to get right.
Read first
Al Jazeirah Airport (ICAO OMRJ, no IATA code) is a separate private airfield near Al Jazirah Al Hamra, reported at around 20 km from RKT, with two tarmac runways of about 500 m and 765 m. It is operated by Jazirah Aviation Club, the microlight and light-sport club that has been flying there since 1998, and it is where most microlight, gyrocopter and paramotor activity in the emirate takes place.
If your booking, your instructor or your trial flight says Jazirah Aviation Club, your destination is OMRJ and not OMRK. The two fields have separate operators, separate procedures and separate access arrangements. Details of OMRJ are reported by the club and third parties rather than published by this airport — check with them directly.
Fuel
This decides whether RKT works for your aircraft at all, so it goes near the top rather than in a footnote.
Operating detail
Extracted from the AIP and the airport's own publications. It is planning material, not an operational source — fly the current AIP and the NOTAMs.
Ras Al Khaimah CTR is Class D from ground to 1,500 ft AMSL, callsign Ras Al Khaimah Tower, English only. Tower 118.250, approach radar 124.000, ATIS 126.075, apron 121.750. Transition altitude 13,000 ft. IFR and VFR both permitted.
A dedicated concrete GA parking area rated PCR 1840/R/D/W/T — the strongest pavement on the field. A parking area of 32,678 m² is published by the airport; the number of business-jet positions on it is not.
All departing traffic files a flight plan at the AIS and MET briefing office, which is staffed H24 along with the ATS reporting office.
Circuit direction, altitude, join and departure points and the touch-and-go policy are not published in the AIP chapter. Agree them with the operations desk before you plan a training detail — do not assume.
Intersection departures
RKT publishes four reduced-length intersection departures that are restricted to light aircraft category and rotary-wing only. This is one of the few places where being small is an advantage, and it is also a restriction the legacy website omitted entirely.
| Entry point | TORA | Permitted categories |
|---|---|---|
| RWY 16 from Int N | 2,218 m | Light aircraft category and rotary-wing only |
| RWY 16 from Int S | 2,004 m | Light aircraft category and rotary-wing only |
| RWY 34 from Int N | 1,566 m | Light aircraft category and rotary-wing only |
| RWY 34 from Int S | 1,780 m | Light aircraft category and rotary-wing only |
| RWY 34 from Int L | 3,680 m | All categories — the only unrestricted intersection |
Full-length declared distances are 3,760 m TORA on both runways, with 3,810 m ASDA on runway 16.
Tuesdays
Runway 16/34 is closed for planned maintenance every Tuesday from 0500 to 0800 UTC, which is 0900 to 1200 local time. The runway friction test runs on the third Tuesday of the month from 0500 to 0730 UTC.
No training flights are permitted during planned maintenance unless written permission has been obtained from the airport authority in advance. If your syllabus puts students in the circuit on a Tuesday morning, that permission is the first thing to arrange.
Flight training
IAA GCC has established its primary training base at RKT. HADID International Services took a 50 per cent stake alongside Intercontinental Aviation Enterprise, announced at the Arab Aviation Summit in 2025. Registrations opened on 1 March 2025 and the first cohort was announced for September 2025.
Diamond DA40 and DA42. The shareholder has announced ten Diamond aircraft — eight DA40 NG and two DA42-VI — supporting UAE and EASA registrations, with deliveries reported from 2026.
An ALSIM AL40/42 device certified to EASA FNPT II, FAA AATD/FTD Level 5 and Transport Canada FTD Level 2, reported as suitable for PPL, CPL and multi-engine instrument training.
The academy describes a 3,000 m² training facility and hangar complex at RKT covering flight operations, maintenance, academics and student services, alongside offices in Dubai and a type-rating base in Sharjah.
Jet A-1 fuel compatibility, an uncongested controlled field with radar, a full-length runway for instrument work and reduced-length intersections available to light aircraft.
Details of the academy's fleet, devices and facilities are as published by the academy and its shareholders. For current course availability, approvals and enrolment, contact the academy directly rather than the airport.
Recreational and adventure
ActionFlight Aviation signed an agreement in January 2022 making RKT its operational base. It describes itself as GCAA approved and as the only operator of its kind in the northern emirates.
Prices and programmes are as advertised by the operator and change without reference to the airport. Book and confirm directly with ActionFlight.
Advanced air mobility
RAKTA, Joby Aviation and Skyports Infrastructure signed a memorandum of understanding on 29 September 2025, in the presence of H.H. Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, to design, develop and operate the emirate's first air-taxi network.
Planned
Al Marjan Island, Jebel Jais, Al Hamra and Ras Al Khaimah International Airport. The framework agreement covers site identification, design, development and operation.
Construction of the first phase is planned to begin in early 2026, with service targeted for 2027.
The vertiports are being designed for conventional helicopters as well as for eVTOL aircraft.
Joby's all-electric aircraft carries a pilot and four passengers at up to 321 km/h, with a flight-test programme the company reports as beyond 40,000 miles.
Planned, and subject to certification. No eVTOL type certificate and no UAE commercial air-taxi operating approval exists yet. Every date on this page is a target, nothing here is bookable, and no air-taxi service operates at RKT today.
Contact
For anything involving a training detail, a circuit or a first visit, speak to the operations desk before you plan around it.
This page is planning material, not an operational source. Confirm runway, airspace, PPR and fuel information against the current UAE AIP and OMRK NOTAMs, and with the operations desk, before every flight.