Dien Bien Airport ( vi, Sân bay Điện Biên) is located at

Điện Biên Phủ Điện Biên Phủ (, meaning: ''Established Frontier Prefecture''), is a city in the northwestern region of Vietnam. It is the capital of Điện Biên Province. The city is best known for the decisive Battle of Điện Biên Phủ, which occu ...

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

History

Điện Biên Phủ Airport was established in 1954 as Mường Thanh Airfield. The main purpose of it is to serve the French HQ in Điện Biên Phủ at the time of the

First Indochina War The First Indochina War (generally known as the Indochina War in France, and as the Anti-French Resistance War in Vietnam) began in French Indochina from 19 December 1946 to 20 July 1954 between France and Việt Minh (Democratic Republic of Vi ...

. 4 years after the French left Điện Biên Phủ, in 1958, commercial flights to the airport started, operated by the

Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an ...

, but only for a while due to the low demand at the time. In 1984, along with the 30th Anniversary of the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, flights from

Hanoi Hanoi or Ha Noi ( or ; vi, Hà Nội ) is the capital and second-largest city of Vietnam. It covers an area of . It consists of 12 urban districts, one district-leveled town and 17 rural districts. Located within the Red River Delta, Hanoi is ...

to Điện Biên Phủ resumed, operated by the

Antonov An-24 The Antonov An-24 (Russian/Ukrainian: Антонов Ан-24) ( NATO reporting name: Coke) is a 44-seat twin turboprop transport/passenger aircraft designed in 1957 in the Soviet Union by the Antonov Design Bureau and manufactured by Kyiv, Ir ...

. 10 months later, in January 30, 1995, this route is once again suspended because of the runway needed to be repaired. After the repair, flight resumed, this time being operated by the

ATR 72 The ATR 72 is a twin-engine turboprop, short-haul regional airliner developed and produced in France and Italy by aircraft manufacturer ATR (french: Avions de transport régional or it, Aerei da Trasporto Regionale), a joint venture formed ...

. In 2004, the airport's apron is extended to 12000 square meters, with 4 parking stands for ATR 72 aircraft.

Facilities

Today, Điện Biên Phủ Airport is the largest and only commercial airport serving the city of

in particular and the entire Northwest region of Vietnam, after the closure of Nà Sản Airport in 2004. It is located in the middle of a basin at an altitude of 1.611 meters above sea level. The apron and taxiway is 7500 square meters wide, with 4 parking stands for aircraft. The terminal is 2500 square meters wide and is capable of serving 4 flights per day. In 2023, the airport was upgraded with a new × runway and associated facilities to make it compatible with bigger-sized narrow-body airliners such as the

Airbus A320 The Airbus A320 family is a series of narrow-body airliners developed and produced by Airbus. The A320 was launched in March 1984, first flew on 22 February 1987, and was introduced in April 1988 by Air France. The first member of the famil ...

/ A321 and

Boeing 737 The Boeing 737 is a narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing at its Boeing Renton Factory, Renton Factory in Washington (state), Washington. Developed to supplement the Boeing 727 on short and thin routes, the twinjet retains the Boeing 707, 7 ...

Expansion

Dien Bien province People's Committee has approved the temporary closure of the airport following an expansion proposal by the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam. The closure will start from 1 April 2023 and lasts 6 months. The expansion includes building a new security fences, upgrading terminal's facilities and the lengthening and widening of the runway. The runway will be extended to 2400 m (7874 ft) and widened to 45 m, enabling the airport to accommodate A320/A321 or equivalent aircraft. The terminal will be upgraded to receive up to 500 thousand passengers per year. On 30 November 2023, the expansion project was completed and the airport resumed all operations on 2 December. The project cost is estimated to be around VND 1.467 trillion (US$ 62 million), all paid for by ACV.https://vnexpress.net/san-bay-dien-bien-chuan-bi-dong-cua-6-thang-4563807.html

Airlines and destinations

Gallery

File:Dien Bien Phu Airport aux1.JPG File:Dien Bien Phu Airport aux2.JPG File:Dien Bien Phu Airport aux3.JPG

References

External links

Airports in Vietnam Dien Bien Phu Buildings and structures in Điện Biên province {{Vietnam-airport-stub