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Paro Airport is the sole international airport in Bhutan. The airport is located from Paro in a deep valley on the bank of the river Paro Chhu. With surrounding peaks as high as it is considered one of the world's most challenging airports. As of October 2009, only eight pilots in the world were certified to land at the airport. 〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=The Himalayan airport so dangerous only eight pilots are qualified to land there - Daily Mail Online )〕 Flights at Paro are allowed under visual meteorological conditions only and are restricted to daylight hours from sunrise to sunset. It is one of only four airports in Bhutan. ==History== In 1968, the Indian Border Roads Organisation built an airstrip in the Paro valley, which was initially utilised for on call helicopter operations by the Indian Armed Forces on behalf of Royal Government of Bhutan. Bhutan's first airline, Drukair, was established by Royal Charter on 5 April 1981. Paro Airport is located deep in a valley above mean sea level and is surrounded by mountains as high as . Initially, the airport was constructed with a runway in length, giving the Bhutanese government specific requirements for a choice of aircraft to be operated from Paro. They required an 18–20 seat STOL-capable aircraft with operating capabilities which included a high service ceiling, high rate of climb and high manoeuvrability. The major requirement for the aircraft was that it must be capable of flying KolkataParoKolkata, a round-trip, without refuelling; due to minimal infrastructure being available at Paro for this purpose. Three different aircraft types were considered after flight tests that had been conducted in India and Bhutan between 1978 and 1980; however, none was deemed suitable.〔 In mid-1981, the Indian government set up a committee to study its own requirements for a light transport aircraft. Based upon this study, the Bhutanese government ordered one Dornier 228-200 for delivery in January 1983, with the option for a second aircraft for delivery in late 1983. The first 18-seat Dornier 228-200 landed at Paro Airport on 14 January 1983, the exact time of landing, the number of passengers on board and even the direction the aircraft was parked on the airport apron being predetermined by the high lama of Paro Dzong.〔 Drukair inaugurated scheduled revenue flights from Paro on 11 February 1983, with Flight 101 departing Paro for Kolkata and returning the next day as Flight 102. At the time of service commencement, Paro Airport consisted of the runway, a two-room air traffic control building (with the ground floor acting as the check-in counter) and a departure lounge on the lawn. Prior to the establishment of the Department of Civil Aviation in January 1986, Drukair was responsible for the operation and maintenance of the Airport's infrastructure. In 1990, the runway at Paro Airport was lengthened from and reinforced for heavier aircraft. A hangar was also constructed for the aircraft, which was funded by the Indian government as part of the Paro Airport Development Project. On 21 November 1988, Drukair's first jet aircraft, a BAe 146-100, was delivered to Paro Airport. In 2003, Drukair was seeking a replacement for the BAe 146 and on 19 October 2004 the airline's first Airbus A319-100 arrived in Paro. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Paro Airport」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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