Kangding Airport
Kangding Airport (IATA: KGT, ICAO: ZUKD) is an airport serving Kangding, the capital of Garzê Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in western Sichuan Province, China. It is located 40 kilometres (25 mi) northwest of the city center. Construction of the airport began in September 2006 and the airport started operation on April 26, 2009.[2]
Kangding Airport 康定机场 | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||
| Operator | Sichuan Airport Group | ||||||||||
| Location | Kangding, Sichuan | ||||||||||
| Opened | April 26, 2009 | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 4,280 m / 14,042 ft | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 30°09′27″N 101°44′05″E | ||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||
  KGT Location of the airport | |||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||
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Sources:[1] | |||||||||||
| Kangding Airport | |||||||
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| Simplified Chinese | 康定机场 | ||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 康定機場 | ||||||
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Situated at 4,280 m (14,042 ft) above sea level, Kangding Airport is the third highest airport in the world behind Daocheng Yading Airport and Qamdo Bamda Airport, and just higher than Ngari Gunsa Airport (elevation 4,274 m (14,022 ft)).[3]
Airlines and destinations
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Lucky Air | Chengdu,[4] Lhasa[4] |
| Sichuan Airlines | Chengdu, Chongqing,[5] Hangzhou[5] |
Incidents
Two China Eastern pilots had their licences revoked and an assistant captain was suspended from flying after a failed landing at Kangding Airport on 1 May 2016.[6] They were attempting to land an Airbus 319 on a scheduled flight MU5443 from Chengdu to Kangding. An attempt was made to land during bad weather, with the aircraft hitting the ground outside the runway at great speed, almost causing a serious crash. The aircraft suffered damage to its landing gear and tail and returned to Chengdu. The co-pilot was seated in the cabin, with the assistant captain in the cockpit, however two experienced captains are required to be at the controls when landing at this high altitude airport.
References
- Airport information for KGT at Great Circle Mapper.
- 康定机场正式通航. Sichuan Online (in Chinese).
- 西藏阿里昆莎机场迎来首航 为世界海拔第三高. chinanews.com (in Chinese). 2010-07-01.
- 祥鹏航空夏航季开通"昆明-临沧"等10余条航线. CAAC News (in Chinese). 2019-03-26. Retrieved 15 July 2019.
- 抢抓"四川机遇" 未来成都还将开通这些国际航线 (in Chinese). Retrieved 15 July 2019.
- "Flight captains punished after failed landing" (10 May 2016). Shenzhen Daily. 10 May 2016. Retrieved 11 May 2016.