NEPAL TRAVELLER
Bharatpur Airport is a domestic airport located in Bharatpur, Chitwan District, in Nepal. The airport is one of two airports in the vicinity of Bharatpur Metropolitan City, the other one being Meghauli Airport.
The airport is situated just 1.6 kms southwest of Bharatpur city center. Built with aid from the United States of America, today the airport is one of the best-connected airports of the country.
It is operated by the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) and is served by many domestic airlines operating commercial schedule flights.
The airport has been ranked as the fourth busiest airport in the country and is the gateway to Chitwan National Park. It is the fastest-growing domestic airport in terms of aircraft and passenger traffic.
History
The airport was built as part of the resettlement and malaria control program in the Chitwan Valley, with assistance from the Government of the United States of America. The airport was built in 1958 and the first passenger flight landed at the airport on 5 March 1965.
The airport was shut down due political instability in Southern Nepal from 1981 to 1985. Initially, the airport was served by domestic flights on a grass runway but after many years with continuous pestering and lobbying by local people limited expansion of the airport was carried out.
A new terminal was built and the 1158 m runway was paved to enable medium-sized aircraft in 2005. A new proposal for expansion has been passed in 2019 for providing additional services and expanding land coverage.
Airlines and destinations
The IATA airport code of this airport is BHR. There are daily flights from Kathmandu to Bharatpur scheduled by all major commercial airlines. On a daily basis, there are 3-6 flights between Kathmandu and Bharatpur and the flight takes 20 minutes.
Constructed at an elevation of around 650 feet above sea level, the airport has just one runway. Terminals were built and the runway was paved so that it could handle a medium-sized aircraft used by Nepal Airlines and other similar aircraft.
Though not very big the airport premises consist of one departure, one operation terminal and one arrival terminal, along with a few shops available around the airport.
The airport is able to handle bigger planes like 3 ATR-42, 2 Jetstream J-41, and one beech 1900 or any other STOL aircraft.
Compiled by Rina Kumari Mandal
Also Read:
