Tribhuvan International Airport
Encyclopedia
Tribhuvan International Airport is an international airport
situated in Kathmandu, Nepal
.
Tribhuvan is the sole international airport in Nepal. There are two terminals, one domestic and one international. Radisson Hotel Kathmandu
operates an executive lounge for First and Business class passengers for different airlines and Thai Airways International
operates a business lounge for its Business class passengers as well as Star Alliance
Gold card holders. A recent extension to the international terminal has made the distance to the airplanes shorter. At present, about 30 international airlines connect Nepal to various other destinations in Asia
Europe
and the Middle East
. The airport is about six kilometres from the city center in the Kathmandu valley. For the occasion of Visit Nepal 2011 significant renovations are taking place, including the expansion of the departure and arrival halls, airport tarmac and facilities. A new base for helicopters was built on January 2011 as to make helicopters taking off and landing efficient.
aircraft, carrying the Indian Ambassador. The first charter flight took place between Gaucher and Calcutta, in a Himalayan Aviation
Dakota
on 20 February 1950.
In 1955 the airport was inaugurated by King Mahendra and renamed Tribhuvan Airport in memory of his father. The airport was again renamed Tribhuvan International Airport in 1964. The Original grass runway was relayed in concrete in 1957 and extended from 3750 feet (1,143 m) long, to 6600 feet (2,011.7 m) long in 1967. The runway was again extended from 6600 feet (2,011.7 m) to 10000 feet (3,048 m) in 1975.
The first jet aircraft to land at Tribhuvan was a Lufthansa
Boeing 707
which touched down on the 6600 feet (2,011.7 m) runway in 1967. Royal Nepal Airlines commenced Jet operations at the airport in 1972 with Boeing 727
aircraft.
International airport
An international airport is any airport that can accommodate flights from other countries and are typically equipped with customs and immigration facilities to handle these flights to and from other countries...
situated in 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...
.
Tribhuvan is the sole international airport in Nepal. There are two terminals, one domestic and one international. Radisson Hotel Kathmandu
Radisson Hotels
Radisson Hotels is one of the leading, full-service global hotel companies with more than 420 locations in 73 countries. The first Radisson Hotel was built in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1909, and was named after the 17th-century French explorer Pierre-Esprit Radisson...
operates an executive lounge for First and Business class passengers for different airlines and Thai Airways International
Thai Airways International
Thai Airways International Public Company Limited is the national flag carrier and largest airline of Thailand. Formed in 1988, the airline's headquarters are located in Chatuchak District, Bangkok, and operates out of Suvarnabhumi Airport. Thai is a founding member of the Star Alliance. Thai is a...
operates a business lounge for its Business class passengers as well as Star Alliance
Star Alliance
Star Alliance is the world's first and largest airline alliance, headquartered in Frankfurt am Main, Germany . The alliance was founded in 1997 by five of the world's leading airlines: Air Canada, Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines, Thai Airways International and United Airlines...
Gold card holders. A recent extension to the international terminal has made the distance to the airplanes shorter. At present, about 30 international airlines connect Nepal to various other destinations in Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
. The airport is about six kilometres from the city center in the Kathmandu valley. For the occasion of Visit Nepal 2011 significant renovations are taking place, including the expansion of the departure and arrival halls, airport tarmac and facilities. A new base for helicopters was built on January 2011 as to make helicopters taking off and landing efficient.
History
The airport began life as Gauchar Airport; named after the area of Kathmandu in which it was situated. The formal beginning of aviation in Nepal began in 1949 with the landing of a lone, 4 seater, vintage Beechcraft BonanzaBeechcraft Bonanza
The Beechcraft Bonanza is an American general aviation aircraft introduced in 1947 by The Beech Aircraft Corporation of Wichita, Kansas. , it is still being produced by Hawker Beechcraft, and has been in continuous production longer than any other airplane in history...
aircraft, carrying the Indian Ambassador. The first charter flight took place between Gaucher and Calcutta, in a Himalayan Aviation
Himalayan Aviation
Himalayan Aviation was an airline based in India that operated in the northern parts of the Indian subcontinent until its nationalization and merger into Indian Airlines in 1953.- Incidents and Accidents :...
Dakota
Douglas DC-3
The Douglas DC-3 is an American fixed-wing propeller-driven aircraft whose speed and range revolutionized air transport in the 1930s and 1940s. Its lasting impact on the airline industry and World War II makes it one of the most significant transport aircraft ever made...
on 20 February 1950.
In 1955 the airport was inaugurated by King Mahendra and renamed Tribhuvan Airport in memory of his father. The airport was again renamed Tribhuvan International Airport in 1964. The Original grass runway was relayed in concrete in 1957 and extended from 3750 feet (1,143 m) long, to 6600 feet (2,011.7 m) long in 1967. The runway was again extended from 6600 feet (2,011.7 m) to 10000 feet (3,048 m) in 1975.
The first jet aircraft to land at Tribhuvan was a Lufthansa
Lufthansa
Deutsche Lufthansa AG is the flag carrier of Germany and the largest airline in Europe in terms of overall passengers carried. The name of the company is derived from Luft , and Hansa .The airline is the world's fourth-largest airline in terms of overall passengers carried, operating...
Boeing 707
Boeing 707
The Boeing 707 is a four-engine narrow-body commercial passenger jet airliner developed by Boeing in the early 1950s. Its name is most commonly pronounced as "Seven Oh Seven". The first airline to operate the 707 was Pan American World Airways, inaugurating the type's first commercial flight on...
which touched down on the 6600 feet (2,011.7 m) runway in 1967. Royal Nepal Airlines commenced Jet operations at the airport in 1972 with Boeing 727
Boeing 727
The Boeing 727 is a mid-size, narrow-body, three-engine, T-tailed commercial jet airliner, manufactured by Boeing. The Boeing 727 first flew in 1963, and for over a decade more were built per year than any other jet airliner. When production ended in 1984 a total of 1,832 aircraft had been produced...
aircraft.
Airlines and destinations
Incidents and accidents
- 10 May 1972 - A Douglas DC-8Douglas DC-8The Douglas DC-8 is a four-engined narrow-body passenger commercial jet airliner, manufactured from 1958 to 1972 by the Douglas Aircraft Company...
of Thai Airways InternationalThai Airways InternationalThai Airways International Public Company Limited is the national flag carrier and largest airline of Thailand. Formed in 1988, the airline's headquarters are located in Chatuchak District, Bangkok, and operates out of Suvarnabhumi Airport. Thai is a founding member of the Star Alliance. Thai is a...
overran the runway on landing at Kathmandu International Airport. There was 1 fatality out of 100 passengers and 10 crew on board.
- 31 July 1992 - An Airbus 310-304, operating as Thai Airways International Flight 311Thai Airways International Flight 311Thai Airways International Flight 311 was a flight from Bangkok, Thailand's Don Mueang International Airport to Kathmandu, Nepal's Tribhuvan International Airport. On 31 July 1992, an A310-304 on the route, registration HS-TID, crashed on approach to Tribhuvan. All 113 on board were killed.Flight...
crashed into a mountain while approaching Kathmandu killing all 113 on board.
- 28 September 1992 - An Airbus A300Airbus A300The Airbus A300 is a short- to medium-range widebody jet airliner. Launched in 1972 as the world's first twin-engined widebody, it was the first product of Airbus Industrie, a consortium of European aerospace companies, wholly owned today by EADS...
operating as PIA Flight 268PIA Flight 268Pakistan International Airlines Flight 268 was an Airbus A300B4-203, registration AP-BCP, which crashed on approach to Kathmandu's Tribhuvan International Airport on 28 September 1992. All 167 on board were killed....
crashed killing all 167 on board.
- 17 January 1995 - Royal Nepal Airlines De Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter 300De Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin OtterThe DHC-6 Twin Otter is a Canadian 19-passenger STOL utility aircraft developed by de Havilland Canada and currently produced by Viking Air. The aircraft's fixed tricycle undercarriage, STOL abilities and high rate of climb have made it a successful cargo, regional passenger airliner and MEDEVAC...
(9N-ABI), flight RA133 from Kathmandu to RumjatarRumjatarRumjatar is a village development committee in Okhaldhunga District in the Sagarmatha Zone of mid-eastern Nepal. At the time of the 1991 Nepal census it had a population of 2,825 living in 600 individual households.-External links:*...
, had problems getting airborne at Tribhuvan International Airport, struck the airfield perimeter fence and plunged into fields. Of three crew and 21 passengers on board, one crew member and one passenger were killed.
- 5 September 1999 - Necon AirNecon AirNecon Air was an airline based in Nepal. The airline was Nepal's first private airline company and was established on September 14 1992 with Hawker Siddeley HS 748 AVRO. Plans were announced to add two medium size Boeing or Airbus aircraft by September 2002...
Flight 128 from PokharaPokharaPokhara Sub-Metropolitan City is the second largest city of Nepal. Pokhara is city of close to 350,000 inhabitants in central Nepal located at 28.25°N, 83.99°E, which is the centre of the country from east to west or from north to south, 198 km west of Kathmandu or 90 km west of Mugling, and...
to Kathmandu, an BAe 748-501 Super 2BAvro 748The Hawker Siddeley HS 748 is a medium-sized turboprop airliner originally designed by the British firm Avro in the late 1950s as a replacement for the now-aged DC-3s then in widespread service as feederliners. Avro concentrated on performance, notably for STOL operations, and found a dedicated...
(9N-AEG), collided with a communication tower of Nepal Telecommunication Corporation and crashed in a wooded area 25 km west of Kathmandu, while approaching Tribhuvan International Airport. All 10 passengers and 5 crew were killed.
- 26 December 1999 - Indian Airlines Flight 814Indian Airlines Flight 814Indian Airlines Flight 814 commonly known as IC 814 was an Indian Airlines Airbus A300 en route from Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal to Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi, India on Friday, December 24, 1999, when it was hijacked...
plane was hijacked en-route from Kathmandu to Delhi. The aircraft eventually ended up in KandaharKandaharKandahar is the second largest city in Afghanistan, with a population of about 512,200 as of 2011. It is the capital of Kandahar Province, located in the south of the country at about 1,005 m above sea level...
, Afghanistan. Indian Airlines suspended all flights to and from Nepal for some time, fearing lack of security at checkin.
- 24 December 2008 - A Nepal Airlines DHC6 Twin otter 300(9N ABM) ran off the runway during takeoff
- 24 August 2010 - Agni Air Flight 101Agni Air Flight 101Agni Air Flight 101 was a regional flight operated by Agni Air between Kathmandu, Nepal and Lukla, Nepal that crashed on 24 August 2010, killing all 14 people on board. 20 minutes after take-off from Kathmandu, the flight crew had reported technical issues with the aircraft, and requested a return...
, a Dornier Do 228Dornier Do 228The Dornier 228 is a twin-turboprop STOL utility aircraft, manufactured by Dornier GmbH from 1981 until 1998. In 1983, Hindustan Aeronautics bought a production licence and manufactures the 228 for the Asian market sphere. Approximately 270 Do 228 were built at Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany and...
aircraft, registration 9N-AHE, crashed into the hills outside Kathmandu in heavy rain. All on board (3 crew, 11 passengers) were killed, with the pilot having reported a generatorElectrical generatorIn electricity generation, an electric generator is a device that converts mechanical energy to electrical energy. A generator forces electric charge to flow through an external electrical circuit. It is analogous to a water pump, which causes water to flow...
failure. The plane, crashed near ShikharpurShikharpur, NarayaniShikharpur is a village development committee in Makwanpur District in the Narayani Zone of southern Nepal. At the time of the 1991 Nepal census it had a population of 3884 people living in 667 individual households....
village, 80 km (49.7 mi) south of Kathmandu. There were six foreigners on board, four Americans, one Japanese and one UK citizen. Witnesses said the plane had broken into small pieces. The plane had left Tribhuvan International Airport, bound for Tenzing-Hillary Airport.
- 15 December 2010 - A Tara AirTara AirTara Air Pvt.Ltd is an airline based in Nepal. It is a subsidiary of Yeti Airlines. Tara Air was formed in 2009 using aircraft from the Yeti Airlines fleet and is based at Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, with secondary hubs at Surkhet and Nepalgunj airports. The airline operates...
Twin otter Plane leaving from Lamidanda's Lamidanda Airport,for Kathmandu lost signal 162 km (100.7 mi) east of Kathmandu.There were 19 passengers and three crew members on board the plane.All passengers were Bhutanese citizens and the three crew members were Nepali citizens.It was later found that the plane had been in a crash and all the passengers and crew members died and their bodies were all scattered around the crash site.
- 25 September 2011 - A Beechcraft 1900D passenger plane, operated by Buddha AirBuddha AirBuddha Air Pvt. Ltd is an airline based in Jawalakhel, Lalitpur District, Nepal, near Patan. It operates domestic services within Nepal, serving mainly large towns and cities in Nepal, linking Kathmandu with nine destinations. Its main base is Tribhuvan International Airport, Kathmandu...
, struck terrain while on approach to Kathmandu-Tribhuvan Airport (KTM), Nepal. There was a total of 16 tourists and 3 crew members on board. Initial reports say there was one survivor, but this person died on the way to the hospital. The weather was overcast with very low clouds on the approach. Flights were operating normally under VFR rules at the time of the accident. The Beech 1900 was on the base leg of the approach following a sightseeing flight.
External links
- Tribhuvan International Airport, official site