About Airport
GautamBuddha Airport located inRupandehi District of Lumbani Province, south central Nepal at an altitude of 105 meters above mean sea level with the runaway orientation of 10-28. This airport is continuously operating as a Domestic Airport after its establishment since 1958. This is one of the oldest airport operated in Nepal after Tribhuvan International Airport.This airport has been helping to connect different districts nearby and also the tourists who visit Lumbini as Buddhist Heritage Tour.
Besides serving the local urban agglomeration, the airport is also a gateway to the international pilgrimage destination of Lumbini, the birthplace of Gautam Buddha. Additionally, the airport is situated in the Terai region that traditionally is a significant source of migrant workers; the airport also serves migrant workers that come back to their home region to visit friends and relatives. Although it currently only handles domestic traffic, the airport is currently undergoing a large infrastructure expansion and improvement project, which upon completion will enable GBIA to handle international traffic.
Location of GBIA in Nepal
Knowing the importance of tourist potential and alternate international airport for current Tribhuvan International Airport, upon operation, it will serve as an alternative airport to ease ever increasing traffic congestion of the only international airport in Nepal, Tribhuvan International Airport, which is facing huge traffic in the recent years.
Thus, the Government of Nepal (GoN) has decided to expand this airport as a full fledge International Airport. The expansion and construction of international airport was started from 2014 AD and now it is almost in the completion phase. The Government of Nepal has published Gautam Buddha Airprt as Gautam Buddha International Airport in the Gazette in 2020 AD (2077 B.S.).The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has recently published the name of the Gautam Buddha International Airport (Under Construction) as international airport for the international scheduled air transport, regular use in the Air Navigation Plan (ANP).
Schematic view of GBIA Master Plan