Benazir Bhutto International Airport Islamabad

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This article or section contains information about a planned or expected new airport.
It may contain information of a speculative nature and the content may change as the construction and/or completion of the airport approaches, and as more information becomes available on it.

Coordinates: 33°32′55″N 072°56′29″E / 33.54861, 72.94139

New Islamabad International Airport Gandhara International Airport
IATA: none – ICAO: none
Summary
Airport type		Public
Operator		Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority
Serves		Islamabad
Location		Fateh Jang, Punjab
Website		www.niia.com.pk

The New Islamabad International Airport is a 3,600 acre international airport that is being built to serve the capital city of Islamabad, nearby city of Rawalpindi other areas around the capital of Pakistan. This airport will replace the existing one located in Rawalpindi. This new airport is located in Fateh Jang, which is 30km south-west of the city. Construction of the airport began in April 2007, after a decade long postponement. It is expected to be completed and operational in approximately three years. It will then take all the commercial flights that are currently operating out of the Islamabad International Airport. The airport will be named Gandhara International Airport after the ancient Buddhist kingdom of Gandhara. It has also been suggested to name the airport Benazir Bhutto International Airport, in memory of the great assassinated leader.

1 History
2 Structure
- 2.1 Runways
3 References
- 3.1 Further reading
4 See also
5 External links

[edit] History

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) announced on January 7, 2005 the first-ever green-field airport would be built in Islamabad at a cost of $300 million. The contract signing ceremony was held at the CAA headquarters at Jinnah International Airport, Karachi. Pervez Akhtar Nawaz, (Director General CAA, Air Marshal) signed an agreement with a renowned international consultant, Louis Berger Group of USA in association with Pakistani consulting firm ECIL, to undertake project management services. While the first contract for Project Management Services is signed, the CAA is close to receiving bids and proposals from international design consultants and signature architects for design of the new airport. It is envisaged that the Design Consultants will commence their services by the end of March 2006. Soon after the mobilization of the Project Management Consultants, other processes for invitation of bids and award of construction contracts will be initiated. It is anticipated that the new facility will become operational by 2010. The new airport site is located on 3,200 acres (13 km²) of land, acquired by CAA in 1980s at Pind Ranjha near Fateh Jang, some 20 km from Zero Point, Islamabad and 23 km from Saddar, Rawalpindi involving driving time of only 20-25 minutes through network of motorways and highways. The airport will be developed at par with international standards to serve as major hub for all aviation activities in the region.

Estimated to cost about $400 million, the new airport facility, which is the first green-field airport in Pakistan, shall comprise a contemporary state-of-the-art passenger terminal building, control tower, runway with a provision of a secondary runway, taxiways, apron, cargo complex, and hangar together with all the necessary infrastructure and ancillary facilities. It would cater to the requirements of latest generation of modern passenger aircraft. The new airport will have a modular design to handle 6.5 million passengers per annum and 80,000 metric tonnes cargo per annum. Being a new airport, a significant portion of the land has been earmarked for commercial purposes such as duty-free shops, hotel and convention centre, air malls, business centre, food courts, leisure and recreational facilities. The new airport is envisaged to be a modern landmark structure symbolic to represent twenty-first century Pakistan, as it will be the diplomatic and business gateway to Pakistan through the Capital City of Islamabad. The CAA has announced that the new airport is to be named "Gandhara International Airport" after the ancient Buddhist kingdom.^[1]

President Musharraf has laid the foundation stone of the project on April 7, 2007.This Airport is the largest and most modern Airport in Pakistan. Its total area is 3700 acres (15 km²). It will be completed within four years (December 2010). The construction work has started. It will be completed in two Phases. Work on 1st phase has started & will be completed in about one year. The official said that through a letter, the Ministry of Defence has requested the Capital Development Authority (CDA) to include the area where the new airport will be situated in the capital territory and issue a notification to this effect at the earliest possible time.^[2]

Brigadier (r) Masood Islam, Project Director of the New Islamabad Airport was gunned down in mysterious circumstances in his site office in Pind Ranjha at Fateh Jang Road, police said. However, this tragic news has not stopped the development of the airport and the new airport is entering its second phase of construction. French companyAéroports de Paris Ingenierie (ADPi) and CPG Corporation (www.cpgcorp.com.sg) of Singapore have been selected for designing the airport infrastructure and terminal building of NIIA. The project was worked out through three different levels namely concept designing, primary and final designing.^[3].

[edit] Structure

[edit] Runways

Two runways are planned for the New Islamabad International Airport, the Government has additionally required a 400 acre piece of land to build it on. Length of both Runways will be 4000 Metres.^[4]^[5]