Buyant-Ukhaa International Airport,, formerly called Chinggis Khaan International Airport, from 2005 to 2020 , is a semi-operational international airport serving

Ulaanbaatar Ulaanbaatar (; mn, Улаанбаатар, , "Red Hero"), previously anglicized as Ulan Bator, is the capital and most populous city of Mongolia. It is the coldest capital city in the world, on average. The municipality is located in north ce ...

Mongolia Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 million, ...

, situated southwest of the capital. Largely replaced by a new airport, it currently functions as a backup airport, with a view to be used for flight training as well as for special, charter, and government flights.

History

Development

The airport was first established as Buyant-Ukhaa Central Airport, on 19 February 1957. In 1958, international flights began with flights to Irkutsk and Beijing using

Ilyushin Il-14 The Ilyushin Il-14 (NATO reporting name: Crate) was a Soviet twin-engine commercial and military personnel and cargo transport aircraft that first flew in 1950 in aviation, 1950, and entered service in 1954. The Il-14 was also manufactured in Eas ...

aircraft. Regular flights from the airport started in 1961. The terminal was upgraded to make it suitable for international traffic in 1986. Following the

Mongolian Revolution of 1990 The Mongolian Revolution of 1990, known in Mongolia as the 1990 Democratic Revolution ( mn, 1990 оны ардчилсан хувьсгал, ), was a peaceful democratic revolution which led to the country's transition to a multi-party syst ...

and between 1994 and 1997 a further major upgrade of construction and air navigation was achieved with the assistance of the

Asian Development Bank The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is a regional development bank established on 19 December 1966, which is headquartered in the Ortigas Center located in the city of Mandaluyong, Metro Manila, Philippines. The bank also maintains 31 field offic ...

, making the airport compliant with ICAO standards. The US$50 million construction project was carried out by the successful bidder: a German / English joint venture of

Philipp Holzmann Philipp Holzmann AG was a German construction company based in Frankfurt am Main. History Early years The company was founded in 1849 by Johann Philipp Holzmann (1805-1870) at Sprendlingen in present-day Dreieich near Frankfurt am Main as Phil ...

and Wimpey Asphalt. The airport was renamed after

Chinggis Khaan ''Chinggis Khaan'' ͡ʃʰiŋɡɪs xaːŋbr /> Mongol script: ''Chinggis Qa(gh)an/ Chinggis Khagan'' , birth_name = Temüjin , successor = Tolui (as regent)Ögedei Khan , spouse = , issue = , house = Borjigin , ...

(Genghis Khan) to Chinggis Khaan International Airport to celebrate the 800th anniversary of the establishment of a Mongolian State on 21 December 2005.

Replacement airport

The airport was replaced by the opening of the

new Ulaanbaatar International Airport Chinggis Khaan International Airport,, also referred to as New Ulaanbaatar International Airport, , is an international airport located in the Khöshig Valley of Sergelen, Töv, Sergelen, Töv Province, Töv, Mongolia, 52 km south of th ...

in 2021. Buyant-Ukhaa is somewhat restricted, the single runway is used in one direction for arriving aircraft and in the opposite direction for departures. The new airport significantly expands capacity, and is located at the Khoshigt Valley, south of Ulaanbaatar city centre. As the new airport is to be named ''Chinggis Khaan International Airport'', Buyant-Ukhaa reverted to its former name on July 1, 2020.

Former airlines and destinations

Statistics

Traffic figures

Top destinations

Other facilities

The airline

Aero Mongolia Aero Mongolia ( mn, Аэро Монголиа) is one of the three national airlines of Mongolia. Its head office is on the third floor of Buyant-Ukhaa International Airport in Ulaanbaatar. It operates domestic flights to eleven destinations, a ...

has its head office on the third floor of the main airport building. The

Air Accident Investigation Bureau Mongolia The Air Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB, mn, Нислэг техникийн осол, зөрчлийг шинжлэн шалгах алба) is an agency of the government of Mongolia. Its head office is on the grounds of Chinggis Khaan Inter ...

has its head office on the airport property.Address of Accident Investigation Authorities as of March 2010
." Air Accident Investigation Bureau. Retrieved on 11 May 2011. "Mongolia Air Accident Investigation Bureau Mongolia Ministry of Road, Transportation, Construction and Urban Development of Mongolia Chinggis Khaan International Airport Ulaanbaatar 34 Mongolia" There is also one cargo hangar.

Notes

References

External links

Official website

Civil Aviation Authority of Mongolia

Aeronautical Information Publication
* * {{authority control Defunct airports Airports in Mongolia Airports established in 1961 Buildings and structures in Ulaanbaatar Genghis Khan 1961 establishments in Mongolia