---
title: "CAI is which airport? Cairo"
description: "CAI is Cairo International Airport in Cairo, Egypt. Why the code is CAI and not something you could guess, what HECA means, and the codes it gets mixed up with."
url: https://atoneplace.net/airport/cai/
site: "At One Place"
---

# What airport is CAI?

**CAI is: Cairo International Airport**

Cairo, Egypt

## Why the code is CAI

CAIro.

The airport authority or a contemporaneous record states this directly.

## The airport

- **IATA code:** CAI
- **ICAO code:** HECA
- **Airport:** Cairo International Airport
- **City:** Cairo, Egypt
- **Code origin:** Documented

Cairo is the busiest airport in Africa after Johannesburg and sits on the site of a US air base built during the war. Its ICAO prefix HE covers Egypt, part of the H block allocated to north-east Africa.

## The other code, HECA

Every airport has two codes. The three-letter IATA code, CAI, is the one on your boarding pass and your luggage tag, and it is assigned for commercial use. The four-letter ICAO code, HECA, is the one pilots and controllers use, and it is assigned geographically: the first letter or two identify the region, so every airport in the same part of the world shares a prefix. That is why HECA looks nothing like CAI.

## Common questions

### What airport is CAI?

Cairo International Airport, in Cairo, Egypt.

### Why is Cairo's airport called CAI?

CAIro.

### What is the difference between CAI and HECA?

CAI is the IATA code, used commercially — tickets, timetables, luggage tags. HECA is the ICAO code, used operationally by pilots and air traffic control, and assigned geographically by region.

## Related pages

- [Egypt](https://atoneplace.net/country/egypt/)
- [The flag of Egypt](https://atoneplace.net/flag/egypt/)
- [Airport codes in Egypt](https://atoneplace.net/airport/in/egypt/)

## Sources

- OurAirports — OurAirports (https://ourairports.com/data/) [Public domain]