Khanbumbat Airport ( mn, Ханбумбат нисэх буудал, Hanbumbat niseh buudal, ), also Oyu Tolgoi 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 ...

in Khanbogd, Ömnögovi,

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, ...

. The airport's construction was funded by the adjacent

Oyu Tolgoi mine The Oyu Tolgoi mine, also ( mn, Оюутолгой, ; "Turquoise Hill"), is a combined open pit and underground mining project in Khanbogd sum within the south Gobi Desert, approximately east of the Ömnögovi Province capital Dalanzadgad. ...

. It is the second airport in passenger traffic in Mongolia after

Buyant-Ukhaa International Airport Buyant-Ukhaa International Airport,, formerly called Chinggis Khaan International Airport, from 2005 to 2020 , is a semi-operational international airport serving Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, situated southwest of the capital. Largely replaced ...

. The airport serves nearly 100,000 passengers annually.

History

Oyu Tolgoi mine exploration

Canadian-based Ivanhoe Mines discovered the

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...

copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...

ore Ore is natural rock or sediment that contains one or more valuable minerals, typically containing metals, that can be mined, treated and sold at a profit.Encyclopædia Britannica. "Ore". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Retrieved 7 April 2 ...

deposit in 2001 in the

Gobi Desert The Gobi Desert (Chinese: 戈壁 (沙漠), Mongolian: Говь (ᠭᠣᠪᠢ)) () is a large desert or brushland region in East Asia, and is the sixth largest desert in the world. Geography The Gobi measures from southwest to northeast an ...

of Mongolia. It is in an area known as ''Oyu Tolgoi'' (Mongolian for ''Turquoise Hill''), where in the time of

Genghis Khan ''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 , ...

outcropping rocks were smelted for copper. By 2003 there were 18

exploration Exploration refers to the historical practice of discovering remote lands. It is studied by geographers and historians. Two major eras of exploration occurred in human history: one of convergence, and one of divergence. The first, covering most ...

drill rigs on the property employing approximately 200 people, and Oyu Tolgoi was the "biggest mining exploration project in the world." In January 2013 Oyu Tolgoi started producing concentrate from the mine.

Airport history

The old building of the airport was built in the 2000s. In 2004 the airport was called "Oyut Airport". The runway was dirt. In 2007 it started accepting passenger flights. The new airport was built in 2012. It opened on 10 February 2013.

Information

Description

The Khanbumbat Airport and Oyu Tolgoi mine are in the South Gobi Desert of Mongolia, north of Mongolia's border with the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

, where the mined copper is expected to be shipped. Oyu Tolgoi deposits contain (as of 2010) an estimated 79 billion pounds (35,833,000 tonnes) of copper, and 45 million ounces (1,275,000,000 grams) of gold. Production was scheduled to begin in 2013 and to reach full capacity in 2018. Over the anticipated lifespan of the mine (45 years), Oyu Tolgoi is scheduled to produce of copper per year, an amount equal to 3% of global production. Oyu Tolgoi is also expected to produce 330,000 ounces of gold annually. Rio Tinto intends to employ 3,000-4,000 people from Mongolia, so a new airport was needed. Khanbumbat Airport is located 207 kilometers northwest of the regional capital of the Dalanzadgad, and 522 kilometers southwest of the national capital of Ulan Bator.

Runways and operational infrastructure

The airport of international standards, its runway has a length of 3259 m, and a width of 45 meters. It is able to receive Boeing-737 and Airbus A320 aircraft. The terminal building (designed to mimick a Mongolian ger) is able to cater for up to 240 passengers per hour. In 2013, 80,000 passengers arrived at the airport. The majority were employees of the

Oyu Tolgoi The Oyu Tolgoi mine, also ( mn, Оюутолгой, ; "Turquoise Hill"), is a combined open pit and underground mining project in Khanbogd sum within the south Gobi Desert, approximately east of the Ömnögovi Province capital Dalanzadgad. ...

mine from

Ulan Bator 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 cen ...

, including foreigners who connected through

. In the future it is possible to open international flights directly to Khanbumbat.Oyu Tolgoi Press Release on Khanbumbat Airport

Scheme

Airlines and destinations

Gallery

File:Khanbumbat Airport (Oyu Tolgoi Airport) 01.jpg, Coffee shop inside the airport File:Khanbumbat Airport (Oyu Tolgoi Airport) 02.jpg, Airport security File:Khanbumbat Airport (Oyu Tolgoi Airport) 03.jpg, Airport ceiling File:Khanbumbat Airport (Oyu Tolgoi Airport) 04.jpg, Outside view of the airport File:Khanbumbat Airport (Oyu Tolgoi Airport) 06.jpg, Airport direction sign File:Khanbumbat_Airport_Interior.jpg, Airport interior

References

External links

Оюу Толгой ХХК-ны "Ханбумбат" нисэх буудал
{{authority control Airports in Mongolia Airports established in 2012