In April 1992, with the approval of the State Council, the Central Government invested 257 million Yuan as special funds to the repair of Bamda Airport. The formal construction started in May 1993 and was completed in October 1994. The altitude of Bamda Airport is 4334 meters. The runway is 4,200 meters long and 45 meters wide. It is the first in Tibet and the one with the highest altitude and longest runway in the world. The area of the parking apron is 1,449 square meters and is capable of handling various planes smaller than the Boeing 757. Within the district of Bamda Airport, there are seven mountains with the altitude above 6,000 meters. The climate is very cold and the difference in temperature between day and night is very large. It is the point where the warm air current of the Indian Ocean collides with cold current of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. For four seasons in a year, high winds, sandstorms, hailstones, lightening and rainstorm make life difficult for air transport. Since April 28th 1995 when Bamda Airport was put into use, it has insured safe navigation for 10 years. The air routes have increased from one to two and the number of weekly scheduled flights has increased from one to five. It has safely handled 3,184 flights and transported 280,000 people and 3,200 tons of cargo to date.
Tibet Geographic Magazine