Tribhuvan International Airport renovation project planned
April 20, 2017
Currently the country’s only international airport is encountering different circumstances such as increasing air traffic, unfavorable weather conditions, lack of proper management and facilities, unmanaged infrastructures and many more. All these factors have proven the airport to be the part of world’s worst airports.
To overcome these circumstances and enhance the service of TIA, government has come up with some planning. The government has ordered respective authorities to operate and conduct flight operation at TIA up to the maximum available time at night. Prime Minister has also advised to operate TIA for 24 hours. According to the TIA’s spokesperson Prem Nath Thakur, conducting flights till late night is a matter of complexity because there are lots of factors to be considered.
He said that the airport management committee has to request security officials (Police, Army), Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), Immigration, Custom and all other duty department to manage their manpower and time. He also added that the passengers landing late night will encounter difficulty related to travel and accommodation as Kathmandu city is not live late night. A meeting between the respective authorities will be held this coming Monday addressing the current issue.
TIA is also facing the problem of insufficient parking space due to the fact that the domestic airlines are expanding their fleet capacity in a rapid pace. Parking space for fixed wing aircraft will not be sufficient now on. Thakur said that the East Helipad is expected to shift to South East area to create a parking space for fixed wing aircraft. ‘Currently, there is a football ground at South East region so; introducing helipad at that region will be feasible and highly beneficial for us’, added Thakur.
Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation has also advised all the respective airport authorities to increase the quality of service and facilities offered by TIA. The renovation of runway and taxiway is going on regularly however; the complete renovation process will be carried out after the announcement of 74/75 budget.
The government has also planned to establish new airport in Thulichaur, Kavre for domestic flight operation. Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation has directed all the respective officials to conduct study and experiment on the possibility of introducing airport in Kavre. Introduction of domestic airport in Kavre will effectively reduce air traffic problem.
The continuous pressure has been building up from government, citizens and ministry to uplift the standard of TIA.
