Gwadar International Airport is located in Balochistan at a distance of nine miles (14 km) from Gwadar’s City Centre. It was established as a domestic airport in 1984 and considered to be the biggest airport of Baluchistan which facilitates the passengers especially the people of Gwadar Town.
The airport is under the control of the Pakistan Aviation Authority and it provides travel services to domestic locations which include Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar, Islamabad, and Quetta.
While, the international locations contain Muscat, Qatar, Oman, Saudi Arab, Kuwait – City, Mashhad, Bahrain, and Tehran through Pakistan International Airline (PIA) and many other national and international airlines. The article has all the information including Gwadar International Airport History.
| Title | Description |
|---|---|
| Information | |
| Location: | GAWADAR |
| Name: | Gwadar International Airport |
| In Urdu: | گوادر بین الاقوامی ہوائی اڈا |
| Nickname: | GIA |
| Type: | Public |
| Address: | Airport Rd, Gawadar |
| Code: | GWD |
| Operator: | Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority |
| Local Language Name: | English, Urdu, pashto |
| Terminal building : | Established in 1984 |
| VIP Lounge : | Established in 2008 |
| Serves: | Gwadar, Balochistan, Pakistan |
| Coordinates : | N 25° 13′ 59.91″ |
| Latitude: | N 25° 13′ 59.91 |
| Longitude: | E 62° 19′ 46.18 |
| Elevation: | 36′ |
| Longest Runway: | 5000′ |
| Magnetic Variance: | E 1.0° |
| Fuel Type: | No fuel is available. |
| Oxygen: | Oxygen facilities are unavailable. |
| Repair Facility: | Repair facilities are unavailable |
| Landing Fee: | There is a landing fee. |
| Jet Start Unit: | A starting unit is not available at the airport. |
| Precision Approach: | Availability is Unknown. |
| Beacon Light: | A beacon light is not available. |
| Customs Facilities: | Customs are available without restriction |
| Usage Type: | Airport/Heliport is open to the public. |
| Time Zone Conversion: | -5:00=UTC |
| Daylight Savings: | Airport observes daylight savings time |
| Change Notices Available: | none |
| Flights Connected: | Gwadar to Karachi, Turbat, Quetta, Peshawar, Islamabad, Lahore, Dubai, Qatar, Kuwait City, Riyadh, Tehran, Mashhad, Bahrain and Muscat |
| Website: | http://www.caapakistan.com.pk/timeline/gawadar/timeline-gawadar.aspx |
Table of Contents
Gwadar International Airport History
The history of the airport is traced back to 1958 when the Government of Pakistan bought Gwadar from Muscat’s Sultan. It started operations in 1966. It started its international operations from Gwadar- Karachichi – Muscat and connected Muscat, Tehran, Peshawar, Doha, Lahore, Doha, Islamabad, Riyadh, Bahrain, Kuwait, Peshawar, Mashhad, and Turbot.
In 1984, the terminal was established while in 2008, VIP and departure lounges were opened. After starting successful international flights through PIA, many other national and airlines started operations including Muscat Airline, Oman Air as well as Airblue.
Structure
Currently, the apron of the airport has the capability of landing four aircraft at a time which will be extended after the completion of NGIA at the end of 2022. Moreover, the capability also includes the landing of every type of jets of the Pakistan Air Force. Furthermore, there are three lounges for domestic and international passengers, while one lounge for VIP/ CIP passengers was ordered to establish in 2008.
Runways
Currently, there is one runway of the airport which has the capability of handling the landing of 4 aircraft at a single time.
Facilities
Facilities of the Gwadar International Airport include ticket booking, lounges, waiting area, canteen, mosque, and car parking with the best security system.
Gwadar International Airport Ticket
The airport has a ticket booking office that provides full–time services to its passengers for traveling to domestic and international destinations including Karachi, Muscat, and Oman. The airlines of the airport include Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), Air Oman, and Airblue.
New Gwadar International Airport
NGIA will be constructed by the end of 2022 and the Prime Minister of Pakistan inaugurated the airport in 2019. The airport is situated at a distance of 26 kilometers from the current Gwadar Airport. It is spread over a land of 12 square kilometers while costing 246 million dollars under the project of CPEC (China – Pakistan Economic Corridor).
Location
It is located at Airport Road, Gwadar at a distance of 14 kilometers from the city center of Gwadar, Baluchistan
Infrastructure
A terminal building along with Cargo – Terminal will be constructed with a capacity of 30 thousand tons per year in NGIA. It will handle landing of Sort & wide-body aircraft including Boeing 747, ATR – 72, Airbus- A380, and Boeing 737. There will be 75 meters wide and 3700 long runway for handling all types of aircraft and jets. A 23 metered taxiway will be constructed in the project.
The second runway of the airport will be constructed in the near future. Furthermore, an ATC tower (Air Traffic Control) will be constructed along with the facilities of fire, fuel farm, crash and rescue with a total cost of 55 billion Rupees.
Inauguration
Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan inaugurated NGIA on March 29, 2019, and the project was awarded by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) of Pakistan to a Chinese company under the name of China Communication Construction.
Area
The airport covers a total area of three thousand acres (12 square kilometers). The area of 2300 acres is provided by the government of Baluchistan to China under CPEC for a lease of 43 years. While, the remaining area of 700 acres will be given to the public Overseas Port Holding Company of China, under the agreement.
Facilities
The newly constructed airport will have many facilities including the following.
- Ticket – Booking Office
- Lounge for domestic passengers
- Waiting Area
- Lounge for VIP passengers
- Canteen
- Mosque
- Lounge for International passengers
- Car Parking Area
Flights
The airport will provide traveling services through national and international airlines including PIA, Airblue, Muscat Airline, and Bahraini Airlines to destinations all over the world.
Destinations
NGIA will provide traveling services to many national and international destinations all over the world including the following.
- China
- Dubai
- Turkey
- Oman
- Muscat
- Afghanistan
- Taiwan
- Saudi Arab
- European countries
- Bahrain
- UAE
- USA
- Africa
- England
- Australia
- Canada
Construction
Construction of the airport was started after its inauguration. The project was awarded to Chinese company CCC under China – Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) of 52 Billion dollars. The construction of the airport will include the following.
- Two Runways
- Air Traffic – Tower
- Cargo Terminal
- Operational Building
- Car Parking
- Mosque
- Ticket Booking Office
Cargo Terminal
The airport will contain a huge cargo terminal which will have an initial capacity of 30 thousand tons per year while the capacity of the terminal is expected to increase in the near future.
Project
The project of the airport was awarded to the Chinese CCC Company by the CAA (Civil Aviation Authority) of Pakistan by the year 2014 under the project of CPEC. In 2018, Chines Ambassador presented the design of the airport which was approved by the Civil Aviation Authority. In 2019, China Railway Engineering Group and Beijing Urban Construction Group won a tender of 206 million dollars for the construction of NGIA.
The project is fully funded by China under the CPEC project which will cost 247 million US dollars. The total cost of the CPEC project is 52 billion dollars. It will cover a total of 4300 acres of area and will become the second-largest airport in the country with the capability of handling A380 aircraft. In addition to that, NGIA is owned by Pakistan, China, and Oman under their joint Venture of CPEC
Completion
The project of NGIA airport is expected to be completed by the end of 2022.
Contact Information
Phone # +92 – 21 – 9907 – 1111
Email # [email protected]
Social Media Handle
https://www.facebook.com/GwadarInternationalAirport/