Nepal's New International Airport

A second international airport has officially opened in Nepal. Here is the lowdown on it.

Introduce us.

It is called VNBW/Gautam Buddha, and it is located in Bhairahawa, approximately 250km west of VNKT/Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu.

The airport was officially inaugurated on April 22, 2022 but won’t see any international flights until May 16. It isn’t entirely new – an old airport was located here, and the original runway now serves as a taxiway.

The new airport lies on the border with India.

What’s the lowdown on it?

The airport has a 9834′ (3000m) runway with a RNP approach to 10 and 28, and a VOR approach to runway 10 as well.

You’re going to want to watch out for the high terrain which lies to the north of the airport. The MSA is 9600′ in the northerly sector, and 7000′ for the rest, all of which makes for some altitude restrictions on the way in and out.

The airport itself is relatively small – just a few stands of the international apron and a few on the domestic apron.

The airport is RFF 5.

It isn’t a 24 hour airport though. The tower is only operational daily 0600-1845 local time (0015-1300z) and the general operational hours are Sunday-Thursday 1000-1700 local, 1000-1600 Wednesday and Friday 1000-1500.

Watch out for some serious terrain nearby.

Who can we talk to there?

We have a few contact details for you. Starting with the general airport info:

Telephone: +977 71 507 110
Email: gautambuddha_cao@caanepal.org.np
Tower: 122.5
AFTN: VNBWYDYX

There is an agent based in Singapore who can offer some support if you want to operate in:

Telephone: +65 6592 7623
Email: ops@aerogon.aero

Fuel is expected to be suppled by AEG, and they only have Jet A1.

Want some more info?

The AIP section for the aerodrome can be found here. It’s valid today, but might not be tomorrow so don’t use for operational purposes.

And they are building more…

Pokhara International Airport is expected to open later in 2022, offering connections to neighbouring countries whilst Nijgadh International Airport is expected to open sometime in 2025.

Nepal’s New International Airport