Tawau Airport

Tawau Airport Lapangan Terbang Tawau
IATA: TWU ICAO: WBKW
Summary
Airport type	Public
Owner	Government of Malaysia
Operator	Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad
Serves	Tawau Division
Location	Tawau, Sabah, Malaysia
Time zone	MST (UTC+08:00)
Elevation AMSL	57 ft / 17 m
Coordinates	04°18′48″N 118°07′19″E
Map
WBKW Location in East Malaysia
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 06/24 2,685 8,809 Asphalt
Statistics (2018)
Passenger 1,642,171 ( 19.4%) Airfreight (tonnes) 4,060 ( 4.5%) Aircraft movements 15,579 ( 20.3%)
Sources: official web site

Tawau Airport (Malay: Lapangan Terbang Tawau) (IATA: TWU, ICAO: WBKW) is an airport located 15 nautical miles (28 km; 17 mi) north east of Tawau, Sabah, Malaysia. It is one of two airports in Sabah with immigration counters for international flights, the other being Kota Kinabalu International Airport. Tawau Airport serves the districts of Tawau, Kunak and Semporna and is the nearest airport to the diving islands of Sipadan, Mabul and Kapalai, all of which are located in the latter district.

History

The old Tawau Airport was located on Jalan Utara (Malay for 'Northern Road'), about 2 mi (3.2 km) outside Tawau. It was officially opened in 1968 by the then Transport Minister of Malaysia, Tan Sri Haji Sardon. It could only cater to small aircraft such as the Fokker 27.

By the early 80s, the airport received its first Boeing 737 flight operated by Malaysia Airlines following the newly extended runway. The airport also witnessed regional international destinations to Tarakan, Balikpapan and Makassar in Indonesia by Bouraq Indonesian Airlines and Merpati Nusantara Airlines during that period due to the close socio-economic ties between Tawau and the main eastern Indonesian urban areas.

On 15 September 1995, Malaysia Airlines Flight 2133, a flight from Kota Kinabalu operated by a Fokker 50 aircraft, touched down 500 m (1,600 ft) before the end of the 2,200 m (7,218 ft)-long runway. While attempting a go-around, the aircraft crashed into a shantytown known as Kampung Seri Menanti. There were 34 fatalities, including two crewmembers. In October 2001, another Malaysia Airlines flight (this one operated by a Boeing 737-400) skidded off the runway without causing any injuries or fatalities.

A survey found that the old Tawau Airport had one of the shortest runways in Malaysia. The airport's runway would need to be extended (or a new airport built) to safely accommodate larger aircraft. In view of this, the government announced plans to construct a new airport to be located in the Balung area, approximately 30 km (19 mi) east of downtown Tawau along the Tawau – Semporna highway.

The old Tawau Airport

Present

The new Tawau Airport was opened to the public in December 2001. In 2003, it was officially opened by the then Transport Minister of Malaysia, Tun Dr. Ling Liong Sik. With a capacity of over 1.8 million passengers per annum, it is the second largest airport in Sabah after Kota Kinabalu International Airport. In 2008, 768,967 passengers passed through the airport and there were 10,546 aircraft movements.

One of Tawau Airport's two aerobridges in use

At present, Tawau Airport has a 2,685 m × 47 m (8,809 ft × 154 ft)-long runway, namely runway 06/24. Runway 24 is equipped with Instrument Landing System (ILS). The 1+1⁄2-storey terminal building is equipped with two aerobridges. The airport can accommodate eight aircraft at any given time, and its car park can accommodate 500 vehicles. In addition, there is a police station opposite the terminal building.

On the arrivals floor, there are counters at which passengers may purchase coupons for airport taxis or tickets for shuttle buses to downtown Tawau.

Immigration counters

Airlines and destinations

Airlines	Destinations
AirAsia	Johor Bahru, Kota Kinabalu, Kuala Lumpur–International, Kuching
Malaysia Airlines	Kota Kinabalu, Kuala Lumpur–International
Malaysia Airlines operated by MASwings	Sandakan, Tarakan
Malindo Air	Kota Kinabalu

Cargo

Airlines	Destinations
AsiaCargo Express	Kuala Lumpur–International

Traffic and statistics

Traffic

Annual passenger numbers and aircraft statistics

Year	Passengers handled	Passenger % Change	Cargo (tonnes)	Cargo % Change	Aircraft Movements	Aircraft % Change
2003	551,168		2,701		8,368
2004	620,847	12.6	2,968	9.9	8,900	6.4
2005	680,901	9.7	3,885	30.9	9,814	10.3
2006	660,331	3.0	3,030	22.0	9,215	6.1
2007	736,646	11.6	2,134	29.6	7,992	13.3
2008	768,967	4.4	1,262	40.9	8,546	6.9
2009	866,601	12.7	1,951	54.6	9,876	15.6
2010	897,848	3.6	3,045	56.1	10,845	9.8
2011	922,452	2.7	3,198	5.0	10,186	6.1
2012	982,153	6.5	2,489	22.2	11,087	8.8
2013	1,202,344	22.4	2,844	14.3	13,896	26.5
2014	1,218,616	1.4	3,265	14.8	14,396	3.6
2015	1,203,792	1.2	3,910	19.8	14,007	2.7
2016	1,271,915	5.7	3,570	8.7	13,280	5.2
2017	1,374,893	8.1	3,884	8.8	12,949	2.5
2018	1,642,171	19.4	4,060	4.5	15,579	20.3
Source: Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad

Statistics

Busiest Flights Out of Tawau Airport by Frequency as of July 2019

Rank	Destination	Frequency (Weekly)
1	Sabah, Kota Kinabalu	63
2	Kuala Lumpur	49
3	Sabah, Sandakan	14
4	Johor, Johor Bahru	4
4	Sarawak, Kuching	4
6	Indonesia, Tarakan	3

See also

• Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation
• Far East Air Force (Royal Air Force)
• List of former Royal Air Force stations

External links

• Tawau Airport, Sabah at Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad
• Current weather for WBKW at NOAA/NWS
• Accident history for TWU at Aviation Safety Network