Due to planned significant growth, the Paro International Airport will need to purchase more than 90 acres of land, comprising both public and private land. To supervise the land acquisition, a working committee was formed, with members from important agencies such as Wangchug Gup, Paro Dzongkhag engineer, Department of Surface Transport, Bhutan Civil Aviation Authority, and Department of Air Transport (DAT). The DAT claims that the airport must be expanded because the existing infrastructure does not adhere to the Bhutan Aerodrome Standards and does not address the audit findings from the Bhutan Civil Aviation Authority about standard non-compliance.
The old highway that runs parallel to the runway, the area around the Paro College of Education, the bridge to the north, the Khangkhu farm area, and portions of Bondey to the south and Chungdungkhar are among the six areas that the committee has identified as being impacted by the expansion. Gyem Lham, the airport manager of Paro International Airport, stated that in order to make room for the expanded runway, the old highway must be reconfigured. “The road realignment feasibility study has already been finished.” International rules state that the runway strip at an airport must be at least 75 meters from the runway centerline, with a 90-meter Runway End Safety Area (RESA) at either end.
The runway strip at Paro International Airport needs to be expanded because it is now just 45 meters wide and lacks a RESA on the southern end. Because of its close proximity to the flight path, the area towards Bondey has been declared a “red zone,” where no settlements are allowed, according to the airport manager. “The first phase will impact 87 private landowners in all. After the land substitutes are provided and their homes are finished, their homes will need to be dismantled, she stated. Only one Thram holder will be impacted by the final phase, which will involve the Khangkhu area, which is mostly government land. Airport-related non-operational facilities will be housed in this space.
