Bathpalathang Airport: The govt. owned land in Bumthang identified for the purpose

Single operator of domestic air service to be decided on March 15

Domestic airports 9 March, 2010 – Work on the domestic airport at Bathpalathang in Bumthang will begin early next week to have it ready for use by the end of September this year.

Civil aviation director general Phala Dorji, on a field visit in Bumthang, said tenders for the work were already floated to bidders, which will be opened on March 15.

“The first phase of the government-funded project will include an airstrip and a small transit shelter,” Phala Dorji said.

Officials from the dzongkhag administration and civil aviation have begun cadastral survey and installing metrological equipment at the identified site, about two kilometers away from Bumthang town, which used to be a pasture land for a cattle breeding farm in Bumthang. Following the completion of the survey they will determine what land area the airport would cover.

Since the land identified for the airport belonged to the government, civil aviation officials said that their work would be competed in a couple of days.

“We’re trying to avoid encroaching on private land to hasten the work,” Phala Dorji said.

District engineer Langa Dorji assured that the existing industries in the vicinity of the airport would be unaffected, given the ample space in the area.

Phala Dorji, however, fears that a few individuals would be affected in some ways from the river diversion work necessary during the airport construction.

The second phase of the project, which includes diverting the Tamzhing feeder road that runs right through the airport area and erecting security fencing around the airport, would have to await necessary funds.

The domestic airport is expected to save tourists from making the arduous 250 km long and winding road trip to Bumthang, a popular tourist hotspot, from Thimphu.

Meanwhile, Yonphula airport in Trashigang is expected to be complete by May end, since it only required some repairs and a transit shelter.

“By end of this year two domestic airports will be connected with Paro,” Phala Dorji said.

Having got the wind of government’s plans to begin domestic airports, civil aviation received four proposals from private parties to run the first ever domestic air service in the country.

Two proposals, civil aviation officials said, were from private Bhutanese companies and the other two from outside the country.

Phala Dorji said that a committee, chaired by the information and communication minister, were in the process of evaluating the proposals.

The committee will pick only one of the four interested companies to operate the domestic air service between Gelephu, Yonphula, Bumthang and Paro.

“Since the business has limited market, it will be given to only one operator,” Phala Dorji said. The successful proposal of the four will be decided on March 15 after the meeting of domestic air service committee. The decisions will be forwarded to the government for approval.

By Samten Yeshi