Шаһ Аманат Халықаралық Әуежайы: Тарихы мен қазіргі жағдайы

Airport in Bangladesh

Shah Amanat International Airport, Chattogram (, চট্টগ্রাম, Shah Amanôt Antôrjatik Bimanbôndôr ćhottoģŕàm ) is an international airport serving Bangladesh's southeastern port city of Chittagong. Operated and maintained by the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh, it is the second largest international airport in Bangladesh after Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It is used by the Bangladesh Air Force as a part of 'BAF Zahurul Haq Base'. It was formerly known as MA Hannan International Airport, named after Awami League politician M. A. Hannan, but was renamed on 2 April 2005 by the Government of Bangladesh, after an 18th century Islamic saint, Shah Amanat. It is capable of annually handling 1.5 million passengers and 6,000 tonnes of cargo. It also serves as a base for the Arirang Flying School.

The airport is in the Patenga area of the city, 20 kilometres (13 mi; 11 NM) west from the city's main commercial hub, GEC Circle and 18.5 km south of the city's railway station on the north bank of the Karnaphuli River. There are a few hotels or restaurants near the airport; numerous hotels and restaurants are available in the city.

The airfield was built in the early 1940s under the British rule. Known as Chittagong Airfield during World War II, it was used as a supply point by the United States Army Air Forces' 4th Combat Cargo Group. From the airport, they flew C 46 Commando aircraft to transport men and supplies between January and June 1945, during the Burma Campaign 1944 1945. At the end of June, control of the airport was returned to local authorities.

It officially became a Bangladeshi airport in 1972 after the Bangladesh Liberation War. At first, it was mainly used for connecting Dhaka and Chittagong. But in the mid 1990s Biman started international flights to Bangkok, Dubai and all other major Gulf cities and it officially became an international airport.

In March 1998, a major renovation and expansion began, which ended in December 2000. This, however, never materialized. Biman and US Bangla Airlines currently operate flights to Dhaka and various points in the Middle East. Domestic destinations like Sylhet, Cox's Bazar and Jashore have also been added. Foreign airlines include Fly Dubai, Air Arabia, Jazeera Airways, Oman Air and Salam Air. Novo Air operates flights to Dhaka only. US Bangla also operates flights to Chennai after originating in Dhaka. Emirates SkyCargo launched cargo services in 2013, making it the first scheduled cargo airline in the airport.

Shah Amanat International Airport can be easily accessed by car or taxi thorough the city's Agrabad and GEC area. It has three parking zones: one civil and two VIP. The civil one is in front of the terminal; it has a capacity of 400 cars. 3 August 2017: A Bangladesh Navy Dornier 228 aircraft on a routine training exercise veered off runway 23 after landing. No crew members were injured during the incident. The airport was closed for about 3 hours; a Cessna 152 training aircraft landed safely on the opposite runway few minutes after the incident. 26 September 2018: A US Bangla Airlines Boeing 737NG aircraft bound for Cox's Bazar from Dhaka was forced to make an emergency landing when the pilots had difficulty in trying to lower the nose gear. The aircraft carrying 171 passengers and crew, made an emergency landing at Chittagong, Shah Amanat International Airport at 1:45 pm local time. No injuries and fatalities occurred as the flight crew, was able to evacuate the entire plane as emergency services rushed to the scene. On 25 February 2019, a Biman Bangladesh Airlines Flight 147 was subject to attempted hijacking. The Boeing 737 800, bound for Dubai via Chittagong, was carrying 143 passengers and seven crew members. The plane made an emergency landing at 5:41pm. The alleged hijacker was killed in a commando operation at Shah Amanat International Airport after all passengers were evacuated safely. It has emerged that the hijacker was mentally deranged and wanted to speak to his estranged ex wife during the saga.