Bagdogra Airport


Bagdogra International Airport, is an international airport located at the western part of the city Siliguri, the city which the airport serves, at Bagdogra area in Siliguri in northern West Bengal, India.
It is operated as a civil enclave at AFS Bagdogra of the Indian Air Force. It is also the gateway airport to the hill stations of Darjeeling, Gangtok, Kurseong, Kalimpong, Mirik and other parts of the North Bengal region and sees thousands of tourists annually. The airport is a major transport hub in the region. The central government of India conferred customs airport status to the airport in 2002 with limited international operations. Air traffic at Bagdogra crossed 1 million for the first time growing at 43.6% percent in 2014–15. In 2018–19, the airport served 2.8 million passengers which was an increase of 28.5% from the previous year, making it the 17th-busiest airport in India. This is one of the few airports in India with zero sales tax on aviation turbine fuel.

Air Force Station

The airbase is home to the IAF No. 20 Wing, as also to the Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 FL fighter aircraft of the No. 8 Squadron and a Helicopter Unit. Along with the airbase at Hasimara, Alipurduar district; it is responsible for combat air operations over a large area including North Bengal, Sikkim, and if needed, Bhutan. The base caters to all military air traffic for the Indian Army's XXXIII Corps based nearby in Sukna.

Expansion

The state government had handed over of land to the Ministry of Civil Aviation for developing infrastructure for night landing in 2010. AAI also expanded the apron at the same time, enabling the parking of 5 narrow body aircraft simultaneously. The IAF, which maintains the ATC and runway, gave permission for night landings by civilian aircraft allowing flights past 6 pm in 2013.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger