Bay-4 parking section of TIA to re-operate from the third week of this month

March 02, 2017-Kathmandu

Long awaited parking Bay-4 section of Tribhuwan International Airport will re-operate its service from the third week of this month.

According to our source, the international airport authority is working rapidly to re-operate the Bay-4 parking section by mid of this month.

Source added that all the construction works of the parking bay section were completed by the previous evening and regular curing of the reconstructed section will be followed up from today.

Earlier, routine inspector of the airport’s runway and parking section had found cracks at the Bay-4 section and had informed the airport authorities to shut down the Bay-4 section from operation after the investigation for preventing both the parking section and aircraft from serious damages. Later being alarmed about the crack occurred; TIA’s authorities had issued the no time notice five months earlier to Nepal Airlines, ground handler of the airport and had prohibited them from parking and loading aircraft at the section.

We were also informed that previously the bay and the runway section of TIA was constructed only to land small jets but the rapid increment of the air traffic and international airlines operator interest for pursuing their operation to Nepal had made the airport authorities to adjust the heavy jets on the week and congested parking structures resulting in to crack the bay section.

Project head of the reconstruction and renovation activity of the airport had reported us that heavy load of the aircraft had even cracked the ground structure of the parking bay-4 section and hence dismantling process of the section was executed.

Source had also informed that soil taste of the reconstructed bay was also examined and verified for the load capacity of the ground to start the reconstruction activity. Later after receiving the green signal from the positive taste report of the soil, reconstruction activity was preceded four months earlier.

It was informed that the workers during the dismantling process were troubled with the thick layer of concrete topped in the section. Here, the thick layer of the concrete clearly explains us about the number of the occasion the bay was precisely maintained by the airport authority to help the airlines to operate their flight. So to prevent further serious cracks in the bay section the renovation and reconstruction work of the parking bay-4 section was kept as the immediate responsibility added the source.

Shut down of the bay-4 section had directly affected airline operators, NA ground handler and TIA with the limited parking space at the airport. TIA later analyzing the low space had also constructed a temporary bay section near the Buddha hangar at the airport for the emergency parking. Though having the temporary bay section none of the airline operators willed to risk parking their big and heavy loaded aircraft at the section.

Source, reported that the bay-4 parking section at the international airport can hold heavy loaded wide body aircraft after being completely reconstructed and will bring an instant relief to all the international airline operates along with the ground handler Nepal Airlines and the international airport authorities.

The reconstruction work of the parking Bay-4 section was commenced under joint contract venture of Sharma & Company and UMA Construction Company.

At present TIA holds nine parking section out of which parking bay number 1, 2, 3 & 4 can hold wide body jet aircraft but bay-4 will only be re-operated from mid of this month and remaining bay number 5, 6, 7, 8 & 9 are designed only for narrow body jet aircraft.

Authorities at TIA analyzing the busy air traffic of country’s only international airport have planned to work on the construction of four additional parking bays until the end of 2018. The airport can hold additional two wide body aircraft and one narrow jet along with a small-sized aircraft after the construction of four additional bays.