This article is about the domestic airport serving Pokhara, Nepal. For the international airport in Pokhara, see Pokhara International Airport.

A Buddha Air ATR 42 in front of the airport's terminal
A Yeti Airlines Jetstream 41 at Pokhara Airport in 2019
A Nepal Airlines DC-3 at Pokhara Airport in 1971
Airside at Pokhara Airport

Pokhara Airport (Nepali: पोखरा विमानस्थल, IATA: VNPK) (in official use by CAAN "Pokhara (VNPK)"[4]is a domestic airport serving Pokhara in Nepal. Pokhara Airport is supposed to be gradually replaced by Nepal's third international airport, Pokhara International Airport, since 2023.[5] While most operations were transferred to the new airport on 1 January 2023, the domestic operations to Jomsom are still operated from this airport in 2025.[6]

History

The airport was established on 4 July 1958 by the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal. Until the 2010s, it offered regular connections to Kathmandu and Jomsom; and seasonal connections to Manang. In 2011 Buddha Air, a private Nepali airline, began international flights from Pokhara to Chaudhary Charan Singh International Airport in Lucknow, India,[7] and announced plans to fly to New Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport in the future.[8] However these international flights were discontinued soon after.

In the late 2010s, Pokhara Airport became Nepal's second domestic hub for air travel.[9]

Facilities

The apron of the airport is relatively small and can only handle eight propeller planes at a time. Pokhara Airport is a diversion airport for the country's main airport in Kathmandu in times of problems such as fog. Due to a short runway and crowded apron, flights must often be re-diverted to third airports with even shorter runways.[10]

Airlines and destinations

AirlinesDestinations
Sita AirJomsom[11]
Summit AirCharter: Jomsom
Tara AirJomsom[12] (resumes 1 March 2025, ends 15 May 2025)[13]

Several Ultralight aviation companies offer recreational and sightseeing flights from Pokhara Airport.[14]

Statistics

Annual passenger traffic at PKR airport. See Wikidata query.

Incidents and accidents

See also

References

  1. ^ Pokhara Airport Archived 24 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine at Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal, accessed 4 March 2011
  2. ^ "Airport information for VNPK". World Aero Data. Archived from the original on 5 March 2019. Data current as of October 2006. Source: DAFIF.
  3. ^ Airport information for PKR at Great Circle Mapper. Source: DAFIF (effective October 2006).
  4. ^ "CAAN Report 2024" (PDF). Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal. Retrieved 1 February 2025.
  5. ^ Lin, Ziyu. "With new airport, Pokhara waits for takeoff - Nation - Nepali Times". archive.nepalitimes.com. Retrieved 8 September 2018.
  6. ^ Pokharel, Santosh (22 December 2022). "Pokhara's Old Airport to Remain Functional as CAAN Prepares to Launch Int'l Airport". República. Retrieved 1 January 2023.
  7. ^ "Buddha Air Lucknow flight" Archived 19 September 2012 at the Wayback Machine, buddhaair.com, accessed 28 September 2012.
  8. ^ "Buddha Air plans to start Pokhara-New Delhi flight"[usurped], "Tour Nepal", accessed 28 September 2012.
  9. ^ "Pokhara Airport" (PDF). Civil Aviation Authority Nepal.
  10. ^ "Aircraft parking at Pokhara Airport woefully inadequate". Republica. 27 March 2014. Archived from the original on 19 April 2014.
  11. ^ "Jomsom". Sita Air. Retrieved 1 February 2025.
  12. ^ Republica. "Pokhara Airport resumes flight service". My Republica. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
  13. ^ "Important Notice". Tara Air. Retrieved 1 February 2025.
  14. ^ "Civil Aviation Report 2018" (PDF). Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal. Retrieved 6 July 2020.
  15. ^ "ASN Aircraft accident Avro 748-106 Srs. 1A". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  16. ^ Aviation Safety Network retrieved 19 November 2006
  17. ^ Adhikari, Deepak (18 February 2014). "Nepal plane crash in bad weather killed all 18 on board". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 27 March 2014.
Allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pokhara_Airport_(domestic)
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