New Islamabad International Airport

New Islamabad International Airport
Islamabad International Airport
IATA: none – ICAO: none
Summary
Airport type Public
Owner Government of Pakistan
Operator Civil Aviation Authority of Pakistan
Serves Islamabad-Rawalpindi metropolitan area
Location Attock district, Punjab
Hub for
Elevation AMSL 1,899 ft / 579 m
Coordinates 33°33′38.57″N 72°51′5.81″E / 33.5607139°N 72.8516139°E / 33.5607139; 72.8516139Coordinates: 33°33′38.57″N 72°51′5.81″E / 33.5607139°N 72.8516139°E / 33.5607139; 72.8516139
Website http://www.islamabadairport.com.pk/
Map
ISB

Location of airport Near Islamabad

Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
1 4,000 13,123 Asphalt
2 4,000 13,123 Asphalt
Statistics
Passengers Capacity 10 million (first phase)
Cost ₨81.17 billion (US$800 million)[1]

New Islamabad International Airport or "Islamabad International Airport" is an under construction international airport in Attock District (Fateh Jang). It is located 20 km from the center of Islamabad and 23 km from Rawalpindi, it will serve the cities of Rawalpindi, Islamabad and Attock District. It is being built to replace the existing Benazir Bhutto International Airport due to ever growing number of passengers. It is expected to be complete and operational by January/February 2017

The airport project was conceived in 1984 for which the acquisition of land in Attock started the same year. Once completed it will be the first Greenfield airport in Pakistan, it will consist of 90 check-in counters and a parking facility for 2,000 vehicles and will cater to ten million people every year in its first phase. Moreover, it will have a covered plaza area for 200 cars, a control tower, maintenance hangar, a 15-gate terminal with ten remote gates, a four star hotel, convention centre, duty-free shops, food court and 42 immigration counters.

History

The plan to construct a new airport for Islamabad was conceived in the late 1980s to deal with the problem of increased passenger load at the Benazir Bhutto International Airport. The current annual turnover of passengers at the current airport is about 3.5 million. It was estimated that the number of passengers at the airport is growing by 14 per cent annually compared to national air passenger growth rate of less than four per cent, making it the third busiest airport in the country.

Therefore, a site in Attock district was selected as the site for the construction of a new airport just a few kilometers from the Islamabad interchange on M1/M2 motorways. However the project couldn't be started and was repeatedly postponed till 2005. The plan to construct a new airport was announced on 7 January 2005 by Civil Aviation Authority. The foundation stone of the project was laid by former President Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz on 7 April 2007. In 2011 Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani announced that a new airport will be constructed in the territory of Islamabad naming it the International Rawal Airport. The design for that airport was ready and the initial construction was started but however was stopped due to the suspension of the designated Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani. After taking seat Nawaz Sharif has announced that the work on Rawal Airport will be started again in 2016 and will be fully functional till the end of his 5-year government.

The CAA asked a team of British architects to design the new airport. The airport is the first-ever green-field airport in Pakistan and would be built at a cost of $300 million. CAA signed an agreement with Louis Berger Group of USA in association with Pakistani consulting firm GT AASR, to undertake project management services. It is anticipated that the new facility will become operational by December 2016.[2] This airport will be the largest and most modern in Pakistan upon completion.

Project details

It is a joint project of Capital Development Authority (CDA), National Highway Authority (NHA) and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and designed by French company Aéroports de Paris Ingenierie (ADPi) and CPG Corporation of Singapore. It is being built on more than 3200 acres of land and consists of a passenger terminal building, 2 runways (28L/10R, 28R/10L), taxiways, apron and parking bays for wide body aircraft. There will also be a cargo terminal, air traffic control complex, fuel farm, as well as a fire, crash and rescue facility. It would be equipped to handle all types of aircraft including the new generation aircraft such as the Airbus A380, Boeing 747-8 and Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The construction site of the airport is near the Rawalpindi-Fateh Jang Road near Fateh Jang, some 20 km from Zero Point, Islamabad and 23 km from Saddar, Rawalpindi.[3] The airport is being developed to be at par with international standards to serve as major hub for all aviation activities in Pakistan.

The airport will have a 180,000m² modular terminal building which will initially be able to handle 9 million passengers and 80,000 metric tonnes cargo per annum. The numbers are expected to reach 15 million passengers by 2019 and increase to 25 million passengers by 2024.[4] 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 naming of the airport has been controversial due to political considerations. The CAA announced its intention to name the airport Gandhara International Airport after the ancient Buddhist kingdom of Gandhara.[5] The project was worked out through three levels: concept designing, primary and final designing.[6]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "No end in sight for new Islamabad airport". Qamar Zaman. The Express Tribune. March 17, 2016. Retrieved March 22, 2016.
  2. ↑ http://tribune.com.pk/story/57036/islamabad-airport-to-be-complete-by-2013-shuja/
  3. ↑ , "The News", 14 April 2013.
  4. ↑
  5. ↑ New Islamabad airport to be named Ghandara, Daily Times, 18 June 2006.
  6. ↑ CPG Consultants: Islamabad Airport Design Finalisation, 2007

Further reading

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