Lhasa Gonggar Airport
Encyclopedia
Lhasa Gonggar Airport ' onMouseout='HidePop("97476")' href="/topics/Standard_Tibetan">Tibetan
: ལྷ་ས་གོང་དཀར་རྫོང་) is the airport serving Lhasa
, the capital city of the Tibet Autonomous Region
, China
. It is located about 62 kilometres (38.5 mi) southwest of the city in Gonggar County
of Shannan Prefecture
. The airport is close to the road to Tsetang
, the capital of Shannan Prefecture.
At an elevation of 3570 metres (11,712.6 ft), Lhasa Airport is one of the highest airports in the world. The airport was built in 1965, a second runway was built in 1994 and terminal facilities were upgraded in 2004.
has gone through a process of trial and error through many hazardous air routes and several fatal accidents during World War II. The first airport was built in May 1956, in the southwest of Damxung County
at a height of 4200 metres (13,779.5 ft). Russian I1-12 and CV-240-401 were the first aircraft that landed at Damxung airport
from the north and south directions and thus broke the jinx of the "forbidden air zone", and this was acclaimed a feat. It took almost nine more years before the first Beijing-Chengdu-Lhasa air route became operational in 1965. It was in 1965 itself that the Gonggar Airport was also constructed. Damxung Airport was decommissioned later (converted into a race course) and the Lhasa Aviation Office was moved from Damxung airport to Gonggar Airport. This established the Gonngar Airport as the second airport in Tibet. Over the years, with more expansion of the airport facilities, Gonggar became the domestic hub in the Tibetan Plateau connecting many other airports in Tibet.
) is very wide on the right bank (southern bank) of the river providing facilities for the runways of the airport. It is for this reason that the Airport was constructed at this location, though away from Lhasa where space for an airport was a limitation. The airport lies to the west of Rawa-me, which is the capital of the county, at the entry of the Namrab Valley, 87 kilometres (54.1 mi) from Tsetang.
Within a radius of 30 kilometres (18.6 mi) the airport is surrounded by mountains with elevations ranging from 5362–6126 m (17,591.9–20,098.4 ft). Access to the airport from Lhasa has been further facilitated by constructing a road tunnel, which has reduced the distance of travel and also time taken to reach the airport from Lhasa by 40 minutes; time of travel from Lhasa to the airport is now about 40–60 minutes by shuttle bus services.
an air. It has an area of 25000 square metres (6.2 acre) with the passenger handling facilities of ticketing office, the baggage collection beltways and visitors gallery on the first floor of the new terminal building, and the departure lounge on the second floor with shopping malls, kiosks and restaurants. There are four aero bridges (one two way bridge and three single way bridges) to facilitate passengers to board and depart from the aircraft. The airport began operation in 1965 with flights to Beijing
and Chengdu
commencing that March. Recent additions included the expansion of the existing terminal in 2004 and as a result the airport has the facility to check in 1,300 passengers per hour during peak hours.
The airport has parking facilities for 5 A340 or 7 Boeing 757
aircraft.
The airport is also connected to the rest of China, which includes cities such as Beijing, Chengdu, Shanghai
, Guangzhou
, Hong Kong
, Chongqing
, Xian, Xining
, Kunming
, Diqing and Chamdo Region. It is also an international route connecting Kathmandu, Nepal
and Lhasa.
, China Eastern, China Southern, Shenzhen
, Hainan
, Sichuan
, and Tibet Airlines
. During tourist season (roughly April to October), there can be as many as forty domestic flights every week to and from Gonggar, carrying on average as many as 70,000 passengers every year. Traveling by air to Tibet from outside the PRC there is only one route at present: a once or twice weekly (depending on the season) flight to and from Kathmandu. Note that it is typically not possible to purchase air tickets directly from these carriers given the requirement of obtaining the necessary governmental travel permit, which is not the same as the visa to gain entry into China proper. It is expected that this figure would reach 110,000 by the year 2010. Pilots landing at Lhasa Gonggar Airport must be specially trained in handling manoeuvres at landing at the high altitude of 3700 metres (12,139.1 ft). Given the frequency of strong air currents picking up in the afternoon most flights into the airport are scheduled in the morning.
A night landing facility was created at the airport by fixing navigational lighting facilities on the runway at a cost of 99 million yuan (US $ 13.2 million) only in 2007, after the airport was built in 1965. This adds to the handling capacity of the airport by about 40%. The night landing facility at the airport was commissioned on November 14, 2007 with the landing of an Airbus A319 aircraft of Air China
carrying 90 passengers. This facility was made operational initially once a week on Wednesdays from Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport
in Sichuan Province. With this facility the airport plans to handle 1.1 million passengers every year by 2010, as against 1.005 million in 2007.
1.5 billion yuan, which is a four-lane road of 37.68 kilometres (23.4 mi) length. This road, partly is part of the National Highway 318
and starts from the Lhasa Railway Station
, passes through the Caina
Township in Qushui County, terminates between the north entrance of the Gala Mountain Tunnel and the south bridge head of Lhasa River Bridge, and en-route goes over has the first overpass of Lhasa at Liu Wu Overpass.
Standard Tibetan
Standard Tibetan is the most widely used spoken form of the Tibetan languages. It is based on the speech of Lhasa, an Ü-Tsang dialect belonging to the Central Tibetan languages. For this reason, Standard Tibetan is often called Central Tibetan...
: ལྷ་ས་གོང་དཀར་རྫོང་) is the airport serving Lhasa
Lhasa
Lhasa is the administrative capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region in the People's Republic of China and the second most populous city on the Tibetan Plateau, after Xining. At an altitude of , Lhasa is one of the highest cities in the world...
, the capital city of the Tibet Autonomous Region
Tibet Autonomous Region
The Tibet Autonomous Region , Tibet or Xizang for short, also called the Xizang Autonomous Region is a province-level autonomous region of the People's Republic of China , created in 1965....
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. It is located about 62 kilometres (38.5 mi) southwest of the city in Gonggar County
Gonggar County
Gonggar County, is a county of the Shannan Prefecture in the Tibet Autonomous Region, one of the 12 counties of the prefecture...
of Shannan Prefecture
Shannan Prefecture
The Shannan Prefecture also known as the Lhoka Prefecture is a prefecture in the southeastern area of the Tibet Autonomous Region...
. The airport is close to the road to Tsetang
Tsetang
Zêtang is one of the largest cities in Tibet and is located in the Yarlung Valley, 183 km southeast of Lhasa in Nedong County of Lhoka Prefecture, Tibet Autonomous Region of China...
, the capital of Shannan Prefecture.
At an elevation of 3570 metres (11,712.6 ft), Lhasa Airport is one of the highest airports in the world. The airport was built in 1965, a second runway was built in 1994 and terminal facilities were upgraded in 2004.
History
Building an airport in Tibet, which is termed in flying parlance as flying over a "Hump" in the Tibetan PlateauTibetan Plateau
The Tibetan Plateau , also known as the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau is a vast, elevated plateau in Central Asia covering most of the Tibet Autonomous Region and Qinghai, in addition to smaller portions of western Sichuan, southwestern Gansu, and northern Yunnan in Western China and Ladakh in...
has gone through a process of trial and error through many hazardous air routes and several fatal accidents during World War II. The first airport was built in May 1956, in the southwest of Damxung County
Damxung County
Damxung is a county far north of the main centre of Lhasa in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China. Its administrative seat is Damquka.Damxung means "selected pasture" in Tibetan language.-Geography:...
at a height of 4200 metres (13,779.5 ft). Russian I1-12 and CV-240-401 were the first aircraft that landed at Damxung airport
Damxung County
Damxung is a county far north of the main centre of Lhasa in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China. Its administrative seat is Damquka.Damxung means "selected pasture" in Tibetan language.-Geography:...
from the north and south directions and thus broke the jinx of the "forbidden air zone", and this was acclaimed a feat. It took almost nine more years before the first Beijing-Chengdu-Lhasa air route became operational in 1965. It was in 1965 itself that the Gonggar Airport was also constructed. Damxung Airport was decommissioned later (converted into a race course) and the Lhasa Aviation Office was moved from Damxung airport to Gonggar Airport. This established the Gonngar Airport as the second airport in Tibet. Over the years, with more expansion of the airport facilities, Gonggar became the domestic hub in the Tibetan Plateau connecting many other airports in Tibet.
Geographic environment
Gonggar Airport is located in Gyazuling township of the Gonggar County. It is built in the county at a location where Yarlung Zanbo River (the Brahmaputra RiverBrahmaputra River
The Brahmaputra , also called Tsangpo-Brahmaputra, is a trans-boundary river and one of the major rivers of Asia. It is the only Indian river that is attributed the masculine gender and thus referred to as a in Indo-Aryan languages and languages with Indo-Aryan influence...
) is very wide on the right bank (southern bank) of the river providing facilities for the runways of the airport. It is for this reason that the Airport was constructed at this location, though away from Lhasa where space for an airport was a limitation. The airport lies to the west of Rawa-me, which is the capital of the county, at the entry of the Namrab Valley, 87 kilometres (54.1 mi) from Tsetang.
Within a radius of 30 kilometres (18.6 mi) the airport is surrounded by mountains with elevations ranging from 5362–6126 m (17,591.9–20,098.4 ft). Access to the airport from Lhasa has been further facilitated by constructing a road tunnel, which has reduced the distance of travel and also time taken to reach the airport from Lhasa by 40 minutes; time of travel from Lhasa to the airport is now about 40–60 minutes by shuttle bus services.
Airport description
At an elevation of 3500 metres (11,482.9 ft) above sea level, the airport is one of the highest in the world. Its runway, with airport rank 4E, at 4000 metres (13,123.4 ft) with a width of 45 metres (147.6 ft), is designed to handle wide-bodied aircraft in the thin TibetTibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
an air. It has an area of 25000 square metres (6.2 acre) with the passenger handling facilities of ticketing office, the baggage collection beltways and visitors gallery on the first floor of the new terminal building, and the departure lounge on the second floor with shopping malls, kiosks and restaurants. There are four aero bridges (one two way bridge and three single way bridges) to facilitate passengers to board and depart from the aircraft. The airport began operation in 1965 with flights to Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
and Chengdu
Chengdu
Chengdu , formerly transliterated Chengtu, is the capital of Sichuan province in Southwest China. It holds sub-provincial administrative status...
commencing that March. Recent additions included the expansion of the existing terminal in 2004 and as a result the airport has the facility to check in 1,300 passengers per hour during peak hours.
The airport has parking facilities for 5 A340 or 7 Boeing 757
Boeing 757
The Boeing 757 is a mid-size, narrow-body twin-engine jet airliner manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Passenger versions of the twinjet have a capacity of 186 to 289 persons and a maximum range of , depending on variant and cabin configuration...
aircraft.
The airport is also connected to the rest of China, which includes cities such as Beijing, Chengdu, Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
, Guangzhou
Guangzhou
Guangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
, Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, Chongqing
Chongqing
Chongqing is a major city in Southwest China and one of the five national central cities of China. Administratively, it is one of the PRC's four direct-controlled municipalities , and the only such municipality in inland China.The municipality was created on 14 March 1997, succeeding the...
, Xian, Xining
Xining
Xining is the capital of Qinghai province, People's Republic of China, and the largest city on the Tibetan Plateau. It has 2,208,708 inhabitants at the 2010 census whom 1,198,304 live in the built up area made of 4 urban districts.-History:...
, Kunming
Kunming
' is the capital and largest city of Yunnan Province in Southwest China. It was known as Yunnan-Fou until the 1920s. A prefecture-level city, it is the political, economic, communications and cultural centre of Yunnan, and is the seat of the provincial government...
, Diqing and Chamdo Region. It is also an international route connecting Kathmandu, Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
and Lhasa.
Flight handling
All flights to and from the Lhasa Gonggar Airport are handled by seven Chinese-based airlines: Air ChinaAir China
Air China is the flag carrier and one of the major airlines of the People's Republic of China. Based in Beijing Capital International Airport, Air China is the world's 10th largest airline by fleet size. The airline ranked behind its main competitors China Southern Airlines and China Eastern...
, China Eastern, China Southern, Shenzhen
Shenzhen Airlines
Shenzhen Airlines is a domestic and international airlines headquartered in Shenzhen Bao'an International Airport in Bao'an District, Shenzhen, Guangdong, People's Republic of China....
, Hainan
Hainan Airlines
Hainan Airlines Company Limited is an airline headquartered in the HNA Development Building in Haikou, Hainan, People's Republic of China. It is the largest privately-owned air transport company and the fourth-largest airline in terms of fleet size in the People's Republic of China...
, Sichuan
Sichuan Airlines
Sichuan Airlines Co., Ltd. is a regional airline headquartered on the grounds of Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport in Chengdu, Sichuan in the People's Republic of China, operating mainly scheduled domestic flights out of Chengdu Airport and Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport.- History...
, and Tibet Airlines
Tibet Airlines
Tibet Airlines is a new airline based in Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region, China, and operates scheduled domestic flights out of Lhasa Gonggar Airport.-History:...
. During tourist season (roughly April to October), there can be as many as forty domestic flights every week to and from Gonggar, carrying on average as many as 70,000 passengers every year. Traveling by air to Tibet from outside the PRC there is only one route at present: a once or twice weekly (depending on the season) flight to and from Kathmandu. Note that it is typically not possible to purchase air tickets directly from these carriers given the requirement of obtaining the necessary governmental travel permit, which is not the same as the visa to gain entry into China proper. It is expected that this figure would reach 110,000 by the year 2010. Pilots landing at Lhasa Gonggar Airport must be specially trained in handling manoeuvres at landing at the high altitude of 3700 metres (12,139.1 ft). Given the frequency of strong air currents picking up in the afternoon most flights into the airport are scheduled in the morning.
A night landing facility was created at the airport by fixing navigational lighting facilities on the runway at a cost of 99 million yuan (US $ 13.2 million) only in 2007, after the airport was built in 1965. This adds to the handling capacity of the airport by about 40%. The night landing facility at the airport was commissioned on November 14, 2007 with the landing of an Airbus A319 aircraft of Air China
Air China
Air China is the flag carrier and one of the major airlines of the People's Republic of China. Based in Beijing Capital International Airport, Air China is the world's 10th largest airline by fleet size. The airline ranked behind its main competitors China Southern Airlines and China Eastern...
carrying 90 passengers. This facility was made operational initially once a week on Wednesdays from Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport
Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport
Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport is a major airport serving Chengdu, the capital city of Sichuan Province, China. It is located in the north of Shuangliu County, about southwest of downtown Chengdu....
in Sichuan Province. With this facility the airport plans to handle 1.1 million passengers every year by 2010, as against 1.005 million in 2007.
Infrastructure
A new highway between Lhasa and the Gonggar Airport has been built by the Transportation Department of Tibet at a cost of RMBRenminbi
The Renminbi is the official currency of the People's Republic of China . Renminbi is legal tender in mainland China, but not in Hong Kong or Macau. It is issued by the People's Bank of China, the monetary authority of the PRC...
1.5 billion yuan, which is a four-lane road of 37.68 kilometres (23.4 mi) length. This road, partly is part of the National Highway 318
China National Highway 318
China National Highway 318 runs from Shanghai to Zhangmu on the China-Nepal border. It is 5,476 kilometres in length and runs west from Shanghai towards Zhejiang, Anhui, Hubei, Chongqing, Sichuan, and ends in Tibet. One notable section of this road is the Si Du River Bridge, the bridge with the...
and starts from the Lhasa Railway Station
Lhasa railway station
Lhasa railway station is a railway station in Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region, China. It lies outside the city, 1 kilometer to the south of the main river and 5 kilometers south west of the Potala Palace.- Track Layout :...
, passes through the Caina
Caina
Caina is a township in Qüxü County, Tibet Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China]].-External links: , official website of Qüxü County....
Township in Qushui County, terminates between the north entrance of the Gala Mountain Tunnel and the south bridge head of Lhasa River Bridge, and en-route goes over has the first overpass of Lhasa at Liu Wu Overpass.