---
title: "NRT is which airport? Tokyo"
description: "NRT is Narita International Airport in Tokyo, Japan. Why the code is NRT and not something you could guess, what RJAA means, and the codes it gets mixed up with."
url: https://atoneplace.net/airport/nrt/
site: "At One Place"
---

# What airport is NRT?

**NRT is: Narita International Airport**

Tokyo, Japan

## Why the code is NRT

NaRiTa, the city it sits in, 60 km from Tokyo.

The airport authority or a contemporaneous record states this directly.

## The airport

- **IATA code:** NRT
- **ICAO code:** RJAA
- **Airport:** Narita International Airport
- **City:** Tokyo, Japan
- **Opened:** 1978
- **Code origin:** Documented

Narita was built over the objections of the farmers whose land was expropriated, and the resulting protests delayed it by years and left the airport ringed with security fencing and watchtowers that are still there. One farmhouse held out inside the airport perimeter for decades.

## Codes people book by mistake

| Code | What it actually is |
| --- | --- |
| HND | Haneda, far closer to Tokyo and increasingly the one long-haul carriers use. |

## The other code, RJAA

Every airport has two codes. The three-letter IATA code, NRT, is the one on your boarding pass and your luggage tag, and it is assigned for commercial use. The four-letter ICAO code, RJAA, 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 RJAA looks nothing like NRT.

## Common questions

### What airport is NRT?

Narita International Airport, in Tokyo, Japan.

### Why is Tokyo's airport called NRT?

NaRiTa, the city it sits in, 60 km from Tokyo.

### What is the difference between NRT and RJAA?

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

### Is NRT the same as HND?

No. HND is haneda, far closer to Tokyo and increasingly the one long-haul carriers use.

## Related pages

- [Japan](https://atoneplace.net/country/japan/)
- [The flag of Japan](https://atoneplace.net/flag/japan/)
- [Airport codes in Japan](https://atoneplace.net/airport/in/japan/)
- [What airport is HND?](https://atoneplace.net/airport/hnd/)
- [What airport is HND?](https://atoneplace.net/airport/hnd/)
- [What airport is KIX?](https://atoneplace.net/airport/kix/)

## Sources

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