Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport
Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport হজরত শাহজালাল আন্তর্জাতিক বিমানবন্দর Hôjrot Shahjalal Antorjatik Bimanbôndor | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Public / Military | ||||||||||
| Owner | Bangladesh Government | ||||||||||
| Operator | Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh | ||||||||||
| Serves | Dhaka | ||||||||||
| Location | Kurmitola | ||||||||||
| Hub for | Biman Bangladesh Airlines United Airways Regent Airways Novoair | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 27 ft / 8 m | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 23°50′34″N 090°24′02″E / 23.84278°N 90.40056°E | ||||||||||
| Website | www.caab.gov.bd | ||||||||||
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| Runways | |||||||||||
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| Statistics (2012) | |||||||||||
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Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (Template:Lang-bn Hôjrot Shahjalal Antorjatik Bimanbôndor ) (IATA: DAC, ICAO: VGHS), formerly Zia International Airport and Dacca International Airport,[3] is the largest airport in Bangladesh. Operated and maintained by the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh, it is also used by the Bangladesh Air Force. Located in Kurmitola in northern Dhaka, it started operations in 1980, taking over as the country's sole international airport from Tejgaon Airport. It is the hub of all Bangladeshi airlines, including Biman Bangladesh Airlines, United Airways, Regent Airways and Novoair.[3] The airport's IATA code – "DAC" is derived from "Dacca", the previously used spelling for "Dhaka".
The airport has an area of 1,981 acres (802 ha). About 66% of the country's international and domestic arrivals and departures occur through this airport, while the country's second largest airport, Shah Amanat International Airport in Chittagong, accounts for nearly 21% of passengers. The airport has a capacity of handling 8 million passengers annually,[4][5] and is predicted by the CAAB to be enough until 2026.[6]
In 2012, it handled 5.6 million passengers, and 214,000 tonnes of cargo.[7] As of February 2014, 27 passenger airlines connect 38 cities, both domestic and international. Average aircraftmovement per day is around 190 flights.[8]
National flag carrier Biman Bangladesh Airlines is the ground handling provider of the airport.[9] Biman flies from the airport internationally to 19 cities in Europe and Asia.[10]
Location and access
The airport is located in Kurmitola and was originally 11 NM (20 km; 13 mi) north of the capital Dhaka.[11] It can be accessed by the eight-lane Airport Road.[11] To the north of the airport lies Uttara and Gazipur, while Dhaka city lies to its south. There is a railway station immediately opposite to the airport named Airport Railway Station.[12][13] The nearest hotel near the airport is the Dhaka Regency Hotel.[14] However, a Best Western hotel is expected to open in mid-2014.[15]
Due to the expansion of the city, the airport has been engulfed by the city, prompting the government to consider relocating it elsewhere.[4]
History
In 1941, during the Second World War, the British government built a landing strip at Kurmitola, several kilometres north of Tejgaon, as an extra landing strip for the Tejgaon Airport, which at the time was a military airport, to operate warplanes towards the war fields of Kohima (Assam) and Burmese war theatres.[16][17]
After the creation of Pakistan in 1947, Tejgaon Airport became the first civil airport in what was then East Pakistan, current day Bangladesh. In 1966 that a project was taken by the then Pakistan Government to construct a new airport at present site north of Kurmitola was selected and tender floated for construction of terminal building and runway under technical support of French experts. For transportation of construction materials a rail station (present airport railway station) was built near the site. However, the new airstrip was halfway done when the Bangladesh Liberation War broke out in 1971. During war, the airstrip suffered severe damage.
After independence, the government of Bangladesh restarted works abandoned by the previous contractors and consultants during the war. It decided to make the airport the country's principal international airport and appointed Aéroports de Paris of France as its new consultants. The airport began operations in 1980 after the main runway and central portion of the present terminal building was formally opened by then-President Ziaur Rahman as Dacca International Airport ("Dacca" is the former spelling of "Dhaka").[18][19] The project took a further three years to complete, during which time Ziaur Rahman was assassinated (in 1981), so, after its completion in 1983, then-President Abdus Sattar re-inaugurated the airport as Zia International Airport.[20]
In 2010, the government changed the airport's name once again, from Zia International Airport to Shahjalal International Airport, to honour Shah Jalal, one of Bangladesh's most respected Sufi saints.[21]
On 6 December 2011, ZA006, a Boeing 787 stopped for fuel at Shahjalal International Airport during a distance, speed, and endurance record attempt. This aircraft, powered by General Electric GEnx engines, had flown 10,710 nautical miles (19,830 km) non-stop from Boeing Field in Seattle, Washington eastward to Shahjalal International Airport, setting a new world distance record for aircraft in the 787's weight class, which is between 440,000 pounds (200,000 kg) and 550,000 pounds (250,000 kg). This flight surpassed the previous distance record of 9,127 nautical miles (16,903 km), set in 2002 by an Airbus A330. The aircraft then continued eastbound from Dhaka to return to Boeing Field, setting a world-circling speed record of 42 hours, 27 minutes.[22]
In November 2013, an agreement was signed for the opening of a 56-room Best Western hotel adjacent to the airport. The hotel is expected to open in the second quarter of 2014.[23]
Development and expansion
In 1992, the airport terminal area experienced rapid expansion with addition of boarding bridges and equipment. A multistorey car park with space for 500 cars was also built at this time.
The airport has been set up and upgraded with technology and instruments worth BDT 70 million up to the 2nd quarter of 2012, by the CAAB. They include: instrument landing system, distance measuring equipment and flight calibration system, which will help the operational standards of the airport. 2 more boarding bridges have been operational, and another is under manufacturing. Asphalt runway overlay began in December 2012 by the Bangladeshi company Abdul Monem Ltd; it took 6 months to complete. Further improvements in the taxiway and runway lighting system will be made by funds from Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA) worth BDT 4.5 billion. Further projects include: primary and secondary radar, a new control tower and a modern drainage system.[8][24]
Parking facilities are being upgraded, both for passenger and cargo aircraft, of the airport extension works of passenger and cargo aprons are also going on.[7] The project will cost BDT 440 million and will provide facility to park four wide-bodied passenger aircraft and two wide-bodied cargo aircraft side by side.[7] In recent years CAAB has completed modernisation and beautification of two terminal buildings; constructed five aircraft parking bays; Installed two more boarding bridges; re-installed power plant to ensure 24 hours power supply; added more passenger check-in and immigration counters and baggage conveyor belts.[7]
Second runway
A feasibility study is underway to decide about adding a parallel, second runway at a cost of BDT 10 billion by 2014.[7] The project has been taken to cope with the rising air traffic, and take pressure off the lone runway, to double the capacity of the airport. CAAB predicts that the airport's traffic will surpass 10 million passengers and freight. Currently, the airport can handle 10 flights an hour, 1 per 6 minutes. However, 60% of the airport's 2000 acre land remains unutilised.[25]
Terminals, airlines and destinations
The airport consists of three major terminals, T1 and T2 for international flights and a third terminal (known as Domestic Terminal) for domestic flights. The arrivals deck is the ground floor and the upper floor is the departures hall. A VIP terminal is built only about 200 meters from the main gate and is only used occasionally. A third international terminal will be built in the future.[7]
Passenger
Cargo and freight
Accidents and incidents
- On 28 September 1977, a Japan Airlines Flight 472 en route from Mumbai to Tokyo was hijacked by 5 Japanese Red Army terrorists shortly after takeoff, and forced the plane to land at then Zia International Airport.[26] The terrorists' demand of $6 million and release of 6 JRA terrorists from Japanese prison was met by the Japanese Prime Minister.[27] Bangladesh Air Force was deployed to control the situation in the ground and to facilitate negotiations.[26]
- On 4 August 1984, a Biman Bangladesh Airlines flight from Chittagong crashed in the swamps near Zia International Airport.[28] All 45 passengers and 4 crew of the Fokker F27 died, making it the worst aviation disaster of Bangladesh. The flight was piloted by Kaniz Fatema Roksana, the first woman commercial pilot of Bangladesh.
- On 22 April 2003, a storm damaged three Airbus A310s, a Boeing 737 and a Fokker F-28 aircraft parked at the airport. The storm, strongest in three years, had a wind speed of up to 111-km per hour.[29]
- On 11 July 2003, a Air Memphis cargo flight was en route from Dhaka airport to Queen Alia International Airport, Amman, when something forced the crew to takeoff on runway 14. The aeroplane overran the 3200m long runway by approx 450m. It was being operated by a Boeing 707.[30]
- On 25 May 2008, a Saudia Flight SV-806 from Prince Mohammad Bin Abdulaziz Airport, Medina, made an unscheduled landing. During the roll the tower controller reported that he saw fire on the starboard wing. Upon exiting runway 14, the crew received a fire indication for engine number three. The fire extinguisher was activated, and all engines were shut down. The Boeing 747–357, which had been charred beyond repair, was successfully evacuated.[31] Only minor injuries had been incurred.[32] An investigation determined that there had been a fuel leak where the fuel enters the front spar for engine number three.[31]
- On 30 April 2012, a Royal Thai Air Force ATR-72-500 aircraft of 1st Air Division/6th Wing, 603sq, (serial L16-2/52, code 60314), sustained damage in a landing accident at the airport. The aeroplane suffered a runway excursion while landing. It came to rest against a concrete barrier, causing substantial damage to the right hand wing. Two passengers reportedly suffered minor injuries.
- On 5 April 2013, a fire broke out in the cargo village of the airport at around 11:30am.[33] Ten units of Fire Service and Civil Defence rushed to the spot and doused the fire after one-and-a-half-hour later. Flight schedules were unaffected by the fire.[34]
- On 28 September 2013, a Boeing 747-400 (leased from Air Atlanta Icelandic), operated by Saudi Arabian Airlines as SV-3822, en route from Riyadh for a Hajj flight, landed in Dhaka when sparks and smoke was observed from the right hand main landing gear during roll out, the aircraft stopped on the runway. The airport was closed for about one hour as result of the emergency.[35]
Gallery
-
The VIP lounge-2, one of four VIP lounges of Shahjalal International Airport. -
Hangars at Shahjalal International Airport where aircraft are stored and maintained. -
A Mihin Lanka Airbus A320 at the tarmac. -
Biman Boeing 737-800 at the tarmac. -
Biman Bangladesh Airlines Boeing 737-800 at the tarmac. -
Biman's Boeing 777-200ER being loaded for its maiden commercial flight at Shahjalal International Airport, Bangladesh. (2010) -
A Biman's Boeing 777-200ER inside a hangar at Shahjalal International Airport -
Biman Boeing 777-300ER on the tarmac. -
The Radisson Hotel near the Airport -
A Biman Bangladesh Airlines Boeing 777-300ER landing at the airport in 2013.
_parked_at_Shahjalal_International_Airport.jpg)
_landing_at_Shahjalal_International_Airport.jpg)
References
- ^ "Aerodrome Information: Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, Dhaka". Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh.
- ^ "Aerodrome Information: Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, Dhaka (continued)". Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh.
- ^ a b "Airports in Bangladesh". Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh.
- ^ a b Ahmad, Rashiduddin (29 September 2010). "New airport at Trishal: Flight of fancy or urban nightmare?". The Daily Star. Retrieved 15 November 2011.
- ^ Byron, Rejaul Karim (28 August 2010). "New int'l airport to cost Tk 50,000cr". The Daily Star. Retrieved 16 November 2011.
- ^ "AIRPORT DEVELOPMENT HISTORY". Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh. Retrieved 16 November 2011.
- ^ a b c d e f "CAAB initiates efforts to expand, upgrade HSIA to elevate its international standing". The Bangladesh Monitor. 1 July 2013. Retrieved 21 July 2013.
- ^ a b Shahjalal airport set for upgrade in two months
- ^ "Ground Handling". Biman Bangladesh Airlines. Retrieved 1 February 2014.
- ^ "Destination Map". Biman Bangladesh Airlines. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
- ^ a b "Dhaka – Airports". World Executive. Retrieved 15 November 2011.
- ^ From Sylhet to Dhaka Airport by train – Dhaka City Forum – TripAdvisor
- ^ Dhaka Airport Road. Google Maps.
- ^ Dhaka Regency Hotel.
- ^ "Best Western International Signs Deal to Open Hotel at Dhaka Airport in Bangladesh". PRWeb. 14 November 2013. Retrieved 22 November 2013.
- ^ Ahmed, Ershad (16 November 2006). "Zia International Airport, Dhaka".[unreliable source?]
- ^ Uddin, Syed Mohd Saleh. "Airports". Banglapedia. Retrieved 16 November 2011.
- ^ Dhaka: Zia International Airport, Dhaka
- ^ Dhaka City :: everything about our city
- ^ ZIA made Shahjalal International Airport
- ^ "ZIA made Shahjalal International Airport". The Daily Star. 16 February 2010. Retrieved 16 November 2011.
- ^ "Boeing 787 Dreamliner Sets Speed, Distance Records". Boeing Press Release, 8 December 2011]
- ^ "Best Western International touches down at Dhaka Airport". Travel Trade Gazette (Asia). 15 November 2013. Retrieved 22 November 2013.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|work=(help) - ^ Runway rebuilding work begins at Shahjalal airport
- ^ "Feasibility study on 2nd runway at HSIA by June next year". The Financial Express. 24 May 2012. Retrieved 6 September 2012.
- ^ a b "JAL 1977 plane hijack in Dhaka: Japanese filmmaker to make documentary". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 15 November 2011.
- ^ "Japanese Red Army member's life sentence to stand". Japan Times. 15 September 2011. Retrieved 15 November 2011.
- ^ "49 Die in Bangladesh As Plane Plunges". The New York Times. Reuters. 4 August 1984. Retrieved 23 January 2008.
- ^ "ASN Aircraft accident Fokker F-28 S2-ACV Dhaka-Zia International Airport (DAC)". Aircraft Safety Network. Retrieved 22 April 2013.
- ^ "ASN Aircraft accident Boeing 707 Dhaka-Zia International Airport (DAC)". Aircraft Safety Network. Retrieved 22 April 2013.
- ^ a b "ASN Aircraft accident Boeing 747–357 TF-ARS Dhaka-Zia International Airport (DAC)". Aircraft Safety Network. Retrieved 24 January 2010.
- ^ "Saudi plane catches fire at ZIA". The Daily Star. 26 March 2008. Retrieved 24 January 2011.
- ^ "Fire at Shahjalal airport". The Daily Star. 5 April 2013. Retrieved 9 April 2013.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Fire fighters douse Dhaka airport fire". Bangladesh News 24. 5 April 2013. Retrieved 9 April 2013.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Incident: Atlanta Icelandic B744 at Dhaka on Sep 28th 2013, overheating brakes". The Aviation Herald. 28 September 2013. Retrieved 2 October 2013.
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