Bathinda Airport is an

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surface ...

serving

Malwa Malwa is a historical region of west-central India occupying a plateau of volcanic origin. Geologically, the Malwa Plateau generally refers to the volcanic upland north of the Vindhya Range. Politically and administratively, it is also syno ...

, a region in the Indian state of Punjab. It is located about northwest of the city near the village of Virk Kalan. The airport is a

civil enclave A joint-use airport is an aerodrome that is used for both military aviation and civil aviation. They typically contain facilities of both a civil airport and a military air base. By country United States The United States has several joint-us ...

of the Bhisiana air force station. Alliance Air introduced flights to Bathinda from

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...

in December 2016.

Infrastructure

The Bathinda airport has a terminal for commercial flights that was built at a cost of . It has a capacity for 100 passengers with a waiting area that can seat 30 people. The terminal contains two check-in counters and a VIP lounge. The airport's runway, 13/31, is in length. The

apron An apron is a garment that is worn over other clothing to cover the front of the body. The word comes from old French ''napron'' meaning a small piece of cloth, however over time "a napron" became "an apron", through a linguistics process cal ...

can park two aircraft similar to the ATR 72-600 in size.

Bhisiana air force station

Bathinda Airport functions as a

of the Bhisiana air force station. 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 a ...

provides

air traffic control Air traffic control (ATC) is a service provided by ground-based air traffic controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and through a given section of controlled airspace, and can provide advisory services to aircraft in non-controlled airs ...

and emergency services for the airport.

Access

The airport is located near the village of Virk Kalan, northwest of Bathinda. It has a car park with spaces for 40 vehicles. The nearest bus station is located from the airport. Direct bus service by the PRTC was scheduled to begin on the opening date of the passenger terminal; however, it was postponed following the death of the PRTC chairman.

Airlines and destinations

It was announced on 25 November 2016 that Alliance Air would begin flights between Bathinda and

. The announcement came one week after talks between Air India and local officials regarding the viability of flights to Bathinda. The flights began operating three times a week with the

ATR 72-600 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 by ...

. A ceremony was held to inaugurate the terminal and the Delhi flights.

References

{{Indian Air Force Indian Air Force bases Transport in Bathinda Airports in Punjab, India Airports with year of establishment missing