Gan International Airport

Gan International Airport ގަން އިންޓަނޭޝަނަލް އެއަރޕޯރޓް
IATA: GAN – ICAO: VRMG GAN Location of airport in Maldives
Summary
Airport type		Public
Owner/Operator		Addu International Airport Pvt Ltd.
Serves		Addu City
Elevation AMSL		6 ft / 2 m
Coordinates		00°41′36″S 073°09′20″E
Website		(GIA)
Runways
Direction	Length		Surface
	m	ft
10/28	2,650	8,694	Concrete
Source: DAFIF

Gan International Airport (IATA: GAN, ICAO: VRMG) is located on the island of Gan in Addu Atoll (also known as Seenu Atoll) in the Maldives.

First built by the Royal Navy, and transferred to the Royal Air Force as RAF Gan, it was a military airbase used during World War II and until 1976. The British handed it over to the government and it was used as a domestic airport. Recently the airport has been upgraded to international standards in preparation for international flights with the opening of tourist resorts in the area.

Gan International Airport (GIA) serves as one of the key tourism gateways to the tranquil and beautiful island nation of the Republic of Maldives, best known for its unique and paradise-like tropical holiday islands that includes luxury beach resorts, treasured honeymoon islands, family holiday islands, and some of the best dive sites in the world.

GIA allows international and domestic aircraft movements 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. It is situated at the southern tip of the country with holiday-makers' dreams such as Shangri-La's Villingili Resort and Spa just a few minutes from the airport.

Until January 2010 the airport was run by the Government of Maldives (GoM) with a human resource base consisting of of civil servants along with technical assistance from Maldives Airports Company Limited (MACL). In June 2009 a public enterprised by the name of Gan Airport Company Limited (GACL) was established by H.E. the President as part of GoM's policy towards a leaner Civil Service and turning state-owned enterprises into Public Private Partnerships. GACL took over management of GIA in January 2010.

A transitional stage followed with administrative restructuring which also involved formal transfer of existing civil servants into the company's new organizational structure and many other processes.

In order to promote tourism and other economic activity in the south a new venture was formed early in 2012 with a vision and plan to further develop and expand GIA in all areas. A joint venture was formed between GACL, MACL and State Trading Organization plc (STO). The new venture is Addu International Airport pvt ltd (AIA).

Gan International Airport is now owned and managed by Addu International Airport pvt ltd.

Facilities

The airport resides at an elevation of 6 feet (2 m) above mean sea level. It has one runway designated 10/28 with a concrete surface measuring 2,650 by 45 metres (8,694 × 148 ft).

Infrastructure Data Runway True Bearing Runway Designation Length (m) Width (m) 099° 10 2651 46 279° 28 2651 46

Displaced threshold location:

   Runway 10: 004129.62S 0730840.90E (93m from Runway End)
   Runway 28: 004141.77S 0730959.77E (93m from Runway End)
   Slope of Rwy 10/28 : 0%
   Surface type : Concrete PCN 35/R/B/W/T
   Type of Runway 10 : Instrument Runway
   Type of Runway 28 : Instrument Runway

Note 1: A series of obstacle limitation surfaces in accordance with ICAO Annex 14, Volume 1; and Airport Services Manual, Part 6, has been established for both Rwy10 / 28 to permit aeroplane operations to be conducted safely.

Strip

   Length in metres : 2585
   Width in metres : 300

Surface Type: Non paved area of trimmed grass free of potentially hazardous potholes, humps, depressions, or other surface variations.

Runway End Safety Area (RESA)

Although a RESA is a requirement for Gan International Airport it is not available due to space limitations. A plan for reclaiming a small potion at both runways for a RESA of at least 90 meters in length and 92 meters in width is under way. See this drawing for details of the required reclamation for establishing the RESA.

Clearway

The clearway for RWY 10 is 500m and for 28 it is 1325.5m. Clearway for RWY 28 is the maximum length that could be declared as a clearway which is half of the RWY length. See clearways on a Google map for details.

For RWY 10 the declared clearway is shorter because of the Villingili channel where ships travel in and out of the atoll.

The clearways are on waters and shall be marked using buoys of conspicuous colour in order to help control and maintain the clearways.

Taxiways

Taxiways A (Alpha) and B (Bravo) are used for entrance and exit to and from runway.

   Width of A : 19.5m
   Width of B : 19.5m
   Surface Type : Concrete

Apron

   Surface type: Concrete

Apron surface consists of areas of different strength categories. The main apron appears to be of similar strength as that of runway. No technical evaluation has been done in recent years. The area which is 90m x 129.7m at the western end of Apron is of a lower strength than that of the main apron. In RAF terms this area was called Hard Standing, which probably was used for Maintenance and Repair Operations of their fleet. Now the Hard Standing is used for remote parking.

Visual Aids - Aviation Ground Lighting Location Available Type of Lighting Remarks Runway 10 420m Simple Approach White Runway 10 Threshold Lighting Green Runway 10 Wing bar Green Runway 10 Full PAPI Left Hand Side, 3°, MEHT 15.63 Runway 10 Turning Node Outer Edge Blue Runway 10 Illuminated Wind Indicator Runway 10 End Lights Red Runway 28 420m Simple Approach Cross bar @ 300m Runway 28 Threshold Lighting Green Runway 28 Wing bar Green Runway 28 Full Papi Left Hand Side, 3°, MEHT 15.63 Runway 28 Turning Node Outer Edge Blue Runway 28 Illuminated Wind Indicator Runway 28 End Lights Red Runway Edge Lights Taxiway Edge Lights Taxiway Illuminated Signage See graphics Apron Flood Lighting ATC Tower ROB On top of Tower ATC Tower Signaling lamp VOR Obstruction Lights on antenna mast Illuminated Windsocks Obstruction Lights Taxiway Holding Point Lights Flashing white

The Airfield Lighting System design and installation complies with the following ICAO publications.

Annex 14 Volume I 3rd Edition, July 1999 Aerodrome Design Manual Part 4 3rd Edition, 1993 Aerodrome Design Manual Part 5 1st Edition, 1983

Note: At the time of the lighting design it was believed that the Aerodrome Passenger Terminal Building would have standby power available. In this regard the primary power supply for Apron Flood Lights was planned to be fed from the Terminal Building Plant Room. Unfortunately there was no standby power available at the Terminal Building until now and therefore Apron Flood Lighting will fail in the event of a primary supply failure. The primary supply comes from Southern Utilities Power Grid.

Visual Aids - Pavement Markings Location Available Types of Marking Remarks RWY 10 Threshold Pre-threshold Arrows White with black border RWY 10 Threshold Transverse Stripe White with black border RWY 10 Threshold Longitudinal Stripes White with black border RWY 10 Threshold Designation White with black border RWY 10 Touchdown Zone White with black border RWY 10 Aiming Point (Fixed Distance @330m) White with black border RWY 10 Turning Node Centreline (see graphics) Markings not complete RWY 10 Turning Node Non-load Bearing Surface See graphics Yellow and Black lines RWY Centreline White with black border TAXIWAY A Centreline Yellow without border TAXIWAY A Holding Position Yellow without border RWY 28 Threshold Pre-threshold Arrows White with black border RWY 28 Threshold Transverse Stripe White with black border RWY 28 Threshold Longitudinal Stripes White with black border RWY 28 Threshold Designation White with black border RWY 28 Touchdown Zone White with black border RWY 28 Aiming Point (Fixed Distance @330m) White with black border RWY 28 Turning Node Centreline (See graphics) Marking is not complete RWY 28 Turning Node Non-load Bearing Surface See graphics Yellow and Black lines TAXIWAY B Centreline Yellow without border TAXIWAY B Holding Position Yellow without border APRON Taxiing Guidelines Yellow without border APRON Service Road Markings Yellow without border APRON Edge Yellow without border VOR SHELTER Basic Object Markings Red / white stripes WIND SOCK MASTS Basic Object Markings Red / white sections

The Taxiway Holding Point Markings and Holding Point Lighting are not in line. The Markings are located for a Precision Approach Runway while the Lights are located for a Code 4D Instrument Runway.

Navigational Aids Type Frequency Location Elevation of Antenna masts Non Directional Radio Beacon (NDB) 317kHz 004151.59S 0730950.25E 21m VHF Omni Directional Radio Range (VOR) 113.4MHz 004139S 0730920E 10m Distance Measuring Equipment (DME) 81X 004139S 0730920E 10m VHF Approach Control Radio 119.1 MHz ATC Tower

VOR Checkpoint

   Location: Bravo Taxiway Holding point (not yet marked)
   Frequency, Distance and Angle: 113.4MHz, 0.1DME, 014°

Standard Taxi Routes

On the Apron two Taxiway Guidelines curved from / to Taxiway Centrelines are marked. See drawing for details. These two lines are 60m apart and have 25.5m distance between Apron edges.

Note: Boeing 767-200, 200ER, 300 and 300ERs have a wingspan of 47.57m. If existing guidelines on the apron are used for simultaneous nose wheel guidance of similar sized planes, the separation between the wing tips of both planes will be 12.4m. The distance between Apron Edge and wing tips will be 1.7m.

All aircraft entering and exiting the main apron will be instructed by control tower about the taxiway to be followed. Marshalling is available when necessary.

Obstacles in the Approach and Take Off Area

No obstacles are present in the Approach and Take Off areas. Obstruction Lights are provided on top of Apron Flood Light Masts, HF TX masts, NDB masts, HF RX masts. These masts also do not penetrate the OLS surface.

Pavement Surface Type and Bearing Strength

   Subgrade category: Medium (B)
   PCN 35
   Pavement type: Rigid
   Tyre pressure limitation: No limitation on concrete surface (W)
   PCN 35/R/B/W/T

Note: The centre of both turning nodes and western end of apron are of a lower strength than the above. All aircrafts shall take precautions to follow turning node centreline markings (lead in part not yet marked). See graphics.

Altimeter Check Location

   Location: Main Apron
   Elevation: 1.62m

Declared Distances

Gan runway was built almost up to the extremes of the island during 1959 for the British RAF. See this drawing to see declared distances put on a Google Earth map of Gan Island. The thresholds had been permanently displaced by 93 meters and remain as the same until today.

Because of space constraints it is not possible to accommodate runway end safety areas. For the same reason it is not possible to extend the runway strip beyond the ends of runway. The strip therefore, has been declared as 60m away from thresholds (rwy 10 and rwy 28) ends.

There is no stopway. Clearways has been established for rwy 10 and 28. The declared distances for Gan International Airport are shown in the following table. RWY TORA ASDA TODA LDA (m) (m) (m) (m) (m) 10 2651 2651 3151 2558 28 2651 2651 3976.5 2558

Disabled Aircraft Removal Plan

Presently there is no plan and therefore aircraft operators shall consult Gan International Airport Manager about this issue before commencing operations.

Rescue and Fire Fighting

The RFF category for Gan International Airport is based on its ICAO code which is 4D. Letter D represents the size of the aircraft from which the RFF category is determined.

The physical characteristics of the runway and taxiways allow accommodating size D planes. An example of such a plane is the Boeing 767-300. Click here for other common Code D aircrafts.

The RFF category is determined by the fuselage width and length of the design aircraft. The overall length of a Boeing 767-200 is 48.51m and fuselage width is 5.41m. Overall length of a Boeing 767-300 is 54.94 and fuselage width is 5.41. As such the RFF category is derived from ICAO Annex 14 Volume I table 9-1 as category 8.

Airline operators shall contact the Airport Manager to see if the RFF infrastructure requirements to fulfil the desired protection level is available or not before commencing operations.

Availability of Fuel and Fuel Types

A refueling facility for JET A1 is available with two tanks each with a storage capacity of 1000 metric tons.

Airlines and destinations

Airlines	Destinations
Maldivian	Kaadedhoo, Malé
FlyMe	Malé
Mega Maldives	Chongqing, Hong Kong, Malé, Seoul-Incheon

External links

• Gan International Airport (GIA)
• Current weather for VRMG at NOAA/NWS
• Accident history for GAN at Aviation Safety Network