BEF meaning in Airport Code ?

Bluefields is the capital of the South Caribbean Autonomous Region in Nicaragua. It was also the capital of the former Zelaya Department, which was divided into North and South Caribbean Coast Autonomous Regions. It is located on Bluefields Bay at the mouth of the Escondido River in the municipality of the same name.

The town was named after Abraham Blauvelt, a Dutch-Jewish pirate, privateer, and explorer of Central America and the western Caribbean. It has a population of 54,532 (2019 estimate) and its inhabitants are mostly Mestizo. Minority groups include Afro-descendant Creoles, and indigenous Miskitu, as well as smaller communities of Garifuna, White People, Chinese, Mayangnas, Ulwas, and Ramas; that is the reason why English is the most spoken language in the city's urban area. Bluefields is the chief Caribbean port, from which hardwood, seafood, shrimp and lobster are exported. Bluefields was a rendezvous for European buccaneers in the 16th and 17th century and became capital of the English protectorate of the Mosquito Coast in 1678.

During United States interventions (1912–15, 1926–33) in Nicaragua, US Marines were stationed there. In 1984, the United States mined the harbor (along with those of Corinto and Puerto Sandino) as part of the Nicaraguan Revolution. Bluefields was destroyed by Hurricane Joan in 1988 but was rebuilt.