Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) has initiated necessary renovation works at Jomsom Airport. Engineer Puspa Raj Neupane stated that CAAN has allocated NRs. 9 Crore for renovation of Jomsom Airport and the renovation project is being carried out by “Apex Construction” and has started first phase work.
The runway renovation is expected to be completed within 15 months he added. “The runway renovation project was started as the old runway has met deadline. According to the rules, the runway of airport should be renovated during the period of every 5 to 7 years.
The ongoing project includes blacktopping of the existing runway, overlapping the old one with new layer of Bitumen.
Jomsom Airport had been facing problems in operation due to damaged old runway. Even the potholes could be seen present in the runway. Previously, two incident has occurred at Jomsom Airport during landing process.
Sak Bahadur Lalchan, Representative of Apex construction stated that the renovation project will be finished within the given timeframe. “Currently, the fences are being changed around the airport and the runway work will be commenced after managing essential construction materials and manpower.” Lalchan said.
Summit Air and Tara Air have been operating five flights daily at Pokhara-Jomsom air route. Similarly, Jomsom Airport has witnessed increase in helicopter operation following the increase in number of tourists and pilgrims visiting Jomsom.
Bhanu Koirala, chief of the airport stated that after maintenance of the runway, the landing of aircrafts will be eased and resulting very less or zero incidents.
Jomsom Airport is a STOL airport located on the bank of the Kali Gandaki River serving Jomsom, a town in the Mustang District of Province No. 4 in Nepal, and the Mustang District. It serves as the gateway to the Mustang District that includes Jomsom, Kagbeni, Tangbe, and Lo Manthang, and to Muktinath temple, which is a popular pilgrimage for Nepalese and Indians. The project is expected to be completed within 15 months he added.
