The Bhutanese Leading the way.
His Majesty The King and Her Majesty The Gyaltsuen, accompanied by Their Royal Highnesses Gyalsey Jigme Namgyel and Gyalsey Ugyen Wangchuck, graced a ceremony to mark the start of construction work on Gelephu International Airport (GIA) on 8 July 2025.
Their Majesties were joined by over a thousand Desuup and Gyalsup volunteers to offer zhabtog – a tradition of voluntary service that has contributed to the construction of homes, monuments, and infrastructure for communities and the nation over the centuries.
The Prime Minister, senior government and GMC officials, representatives of the Zhung Dratshang, Lams and Trulkus, and members of the Gelephu community attended the ceremony. Prayers led by the Dorji Lopen were held from daybreak to bless the construction of the airport.
Addressing the nation on this momentous occasion, His Majesty The King said that the karmic merit of building the airport surpasses that of constructing ten thousand Zangtopelris, as it paves the way for future generations to enjoy peace, prosperity, and stability, and to undertake work that will, in turn, generate merit for generations to come.
The Gelephu International Airport is scheduled for completion in 2029. It is the first major infrastructure component of the Gelephu Mindfulness City initiative.
The airport will span 4 square kilometres across the Paitha River. Key features include a 3,000-metre CAT I Code 4E runway capable of handling Airbus A321 and Boeing 737 aircraft at the onset, and wide-body aircraft in the longer term.
It will have capacity for 1.3 million annual passengers initially, expandable to 5.5 million and beyond as required. The terminal design draws from Bhutan’s four forest ecosystems: evergreen oak, cool broadleaf, warm broadleaf, and subtropical. It will incorporate traditional craftsmanship, landscape zones with native flora, and future connections to Gelephu Mindfulness City developments.
The state-of-the-art airport will be built with ecological considerations. A box culvert system will maintain the Paitha River’s natural flow beneath the runway, terminal roofs will be fitted with photovoltaic panels, and the design will incorporate natural airflow and shading to optimise energy use. Locally sourced materials such as glulam timber will be used.
Besides being a vital link to the world, the airport will provide employment during construction and operations, as well as training programs for Bhutanese workers, and cargo capacity to support exports.
Liew Mun Leong, Chief Executive Officer of Gelephu Mindfulness City Authority, said, “The groundbreaking today for the Gelephu International Airport marks the commencement of construction of the airport, which signifies the beginning of the realisation of His Majesty’s Gelephu Mindfulness City (GMC). The airport itself is one of the key components of GMC. It will bring the world to Bhutan, and Bhutan to the world. It will be transformative to Bhutan economically and socially. Having worked on the building of Changi Airport and having served as Chairman of Changi Airport, I can testify to the phenomenal impact that an airport can make to a country and its people. The Gelephu International Airport symbolises Bhutan’s readiness to thoughtfully open itself to the world, setting a new standard of meaningful and mindful development.”
With the ceremony, work begins on earthworks for river diversion and land preparation. Main construction on the runway and terminal will begin in April 2026, followed by airport systems installation in July 2027. Testing and commissioning will take place from March 2029, leading to the inauguration of the Gelephu International Airport in December 2029.
