Leg 122 MMTG - Tuxtla Gutiérrez (Mexico) to MMOX - Oaxaca (Mexico)

MMTG - Airport Info

ICAO code: MMTG
Airport name: Francisco Sarabia Airport
Location: Tuxtla Gutiérrez

Useful information

Airport elevation: '
Time zone: UTC-
Lighted runways : Yes
Maximum runway length: '
Runway surface : Asphalt

Instrument approach (ILS, LOC, LDA, and SDF):

Tuxtla Gutiérrez Info

Tuxtla Gutiérrez is the capital city of the Mexican state of Chiapas. It is the seat of the local public administration, of the local authorities, and of the delegations of the federal government in the state. It covers more than 40% of the municipal territory, and continues to grow.

The Zoques founded a village in present day Tuxtla Gutiérrez in approximately 1240, calling it Coyatocmó, ("place of the rabbits' house" in Zoque). In the late 14th century, the Aztecs gave it the name of Tochtlán. In the colonial era, the Spanish called it Tusta and it was a mere rest village before continuing to Chiapa de los Indios (nowadays called the Chiapa de Corzo).

In the late 18th century, the Zoques provoked a rebellion in Tusta in which they killed the mayor, the Spanish governor, and their Zoque governor, and also looted and burned various residences, because their mayor, Don Manuel Maesterra y Atocha, had abused his power against them and the Real Audiencia de Guatemala had done very little about it in spite of the complaints.

On 20 February 1762, the town was officially named San Marcos Tuxtla.

On 19 June 1768, Chiapas was divided into two major municipalities: Tuxtla, which had jurisdiction in the Zoque and Chiapa areas, and Ciudad Real — now San Cristóbal de las Casas — which had jurisdiction in the rest of the province. In 1790, the municipalities of Ciudad Real and Tusta along with the province of Soconusco made up the Intendencia de Chiapas, the capital of which was located in Ciudad Real, with subdelegates in Tuxtla, Comitán, and Soconusco.

On 29 October 1813, Tuxtla was given town status. On 27 July 1829 it became a city by decree of the Chiapas state Congress.

In 1833, Governor Joaquín Miguel Gutiérrez moved the seat of state power to Tuxtla. It was returned to San Cristóbal on 31 May 1848 by Governor Nicolás Ruiz Maldonado, who, on the same day, changed the name of the city to Tuxtla Gutiérrez in honor of Joaquín Gutiérrez. In 1858, there was an armed uprising in favor of the Plan de Ayutla which returned powers to Tuxtla for a year, after which they returned to San Cristóbal. In 1892, Governor Emilio Rabasa, moved these powers for the third and final time to Tuxtla.

In 1911, inhabitants of San Cristóbal, in alliance with the Chamulas, staged an armed uprising against Tuxtla to reclaim its former status as state capital, but the attempt failed.

In the 1940s, the construction of the Pan-American Highway facilitated communication with Mexico City as well as internal relations and commerce. Consequently, Tuxtla prospered politically and economically. In the 1950s a drainage system was installed, concrete roads were paved, various schools were constructed, and the Chiapas penitentiary was situated in Cerro Hueco (since relocated).

In the 1960s, there were approximately 45,000 people living in Tuxtla. The main roads were expanded, and growth began beyond the city proper. The first private residential housing estates and the first government-funded residential neighbourhoods for urban workers began to appear. The majority of the working class was dedicated to agriculture, teaching, and commerce, with the majority of foreign investment in the latter. Since the 1970s, the city of Tuxtla has grown much more. Because of the creation of the Chicoasén hydroelectric power plant, many workers established themselves in the city and after some years the majority of them remained as permanent residents.

The population of this city has grown at a dizzying pace starting from the increase of the administrative decentralization of Mexico and the increase of development aid to Chiapas, basically exploding following the armed uprising of the Zapatista guerrillas in the northeast part of the state—particularly, the EZLN.

MMOX - Airport Info

ICAO code: MMOX
Airport name: Oaxaca Airport
Location: Oaxaca

Useful information

Airport elevation: '
Time zone: UTC-
Lighted runways : Yes
Maximum runway length: '
Runway surface : Asphalt

Instrument approach (ILS, LOC, LDA, and SDF):

Oaxaca Info

Oaxaca (city, Mexico), in full, Oaxaca de Juaréz, capital city of the state of Oaxaca in the highlands of the Sierra Madre del Sur mountains in southern Mexico. Oaxaca is a center of Native American culture and heritage in Mexico and is located near some of the country’s most important archaeological sites. Situated in a large valley at an elevation of more than 1500 m (5000 ft), the city enjoys a subtropical climate.

The state of Oaxaca is home to one of the largest Native American populations in Mexico. The state has more people who speak an indigenous language than any of the 31 Mexican states. Zapotec and Mixtec peoples make up a large proportion of the people of both the city and the state, and many speak both Spanish and a Native American language. The city grew considerably in the 1970s and 1980s as migration from rural areas boosted its population to 212,818 in 1990. Growth continued in the 1990s, with the city’s population estimated at more than 256,130 in 2000.

Oaxaca’s attractions include its shaded central plaza, known as the Zócalo, the covered walks and pedestrian-only streets that surround the square, and a wide variety of colonial architecture. Colonial structures include the city’s baroque cathedral, the churches of La Soledad and Santo Domingo, and the converted monastery that now houses the city’s premier museum—the Oaxaca Regional Museum of Anthropology and History. Other sites include the Rufino Tamayo Museum, the Government Palace, the Benito Juárez Museum and Home, the Oaxaca Museum and Home of Cortés, and the Macedonio Alcala Theater, an impressive building constructed in the late 19th century in a French revival style. The city is also home to the National Autonomous University of Benito Juárez (1827).

Oaxaca’s principal economic activities focus on providing services to a large region in south central Mexico and to a dynamic tourist industry. Work in the service sector employs nearly three-quarters of the city’s labor force. Tourism has become increasingly important to the city’s economy since the 1970s. The concentration of indigenous peoples and nearby pre-Hispanic ruins, most notably those at Monte Albán and Mitla, are important draws for tourists. The city has a small industrial sector, dominated by artisan production and small home-based businesses. A lively trade in local handicrafts includes handwoven and dyed carpets, serapes, brightly colored blouses, leather belts, pottery, and silver goods. An international airport is located 7.0 km (4.3 mi) southeast of the city, with daily air connections to Mexico City and a few regular flights to major cities in the United States. The city enjoys daily rail service to Mexico City, and two bus terminals provide ample connections to cities throughout Mexico.

At times Oaxaca has played a notable role in Mexican history. Originally founded by Aztec warriors in 1486, the city was taken over by Spanish conquerors in 1521 (see Aztec Empire). For the next 50 years it flourished as the only major population center between Mexico City and Spain’s first Pacific port at Huatulco. With the opening of the port of Acapulco, Oaxaca’s fortunes declined. The town rebounded in the mid-1700s when the production of an intense red dye made from the cochineal insect, native to the region, was used widely in Europe’s growing textile industry. This ushered in a period of unparalleled prosperity for the town. However, in the early 1800s economic stagnation began due to competition from producers in Guatemala and the discovery of synthetic dyes later in the century. The economy revived in the last decades of the 19th century with the completion of a railroad link to Mexico City and the city of Veracruz on the Gulf Coast, and increasing foreign investment in mining operations. The paving of the Pan-American Highway in the middle of the 20th century opened the city to increasing commerce from Mexico City, but decimated local industries producing consumer goods for local consumption.

Oaxaca has been home to a variety of famous Mexicans. This list includes two presidents, Benito Juárez (1861-1863; 1867-1872) and Porfirio Diaz (1877-1880; 1884-1911), the 17th-century feminist writer Juana Inés de la Cruz, and the 20th-century artist Rufino Tamayo.