Pre-concept and concept design for Gelephu International Airport, Bhutan

In December 2023, the King of Bhutan, His Majesty King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, announced the development of a masterplan for its visionary Gelephu Mindfulness City (GMC) — a special administrative zone and a 2,500 km² economic hub, inspired by Bhutanese culture and the Gross National Happiness (GNH) philosophy.  

An important element of the plan is the development of the new Gelephu International Airport. This airport will be the gateway to the GMC and the country, providing international connectivity, and supporting regional economic growth. Furthermore, the airport is to provide visitors with an inspiring and memorable introduction to the Kingdom of Bhutan and the GMC as well as reflect the country’s cultural values. 

The challenge

Global architecture and design company BIG-Bjarke Ingles Group was appointed by the government of Bhutan to deliver the pre-concept and concept design for the new airport, gateway to the world’s first mindfulness city in Gelephu, Bhutan.  

NACO, as airport consultant, collaborated with BIG on the pre-concept and concept design, which had to be completed by the end of 2024. 

The airport location, wedged between the Himalaya and the international border with India, was both unique and challenging, for example in terms of airspace and topography. 

The solution

NACO provided multidisciplinary airport consultancy and engineering support to this project, helping to transform the vision into an integrated pre-concept and concept design for the new Gelephu International Airport. NACO’s involvement was in three main areas:  

• Airport master planning; with activities like demand analysis, the sizing and planning of the airport facilities, and considering financial aspects related to the new airport.   
• BIG’s architectural vision had to be transformed in a terminal pre-concept and concept design, which was also functionally working. NACO supported with terminal planning; considering the incorporation of logical and flexible spatial programming in the designs, efficient passenger-, staff- and goods-and-waste flows, baggage handling, connection to airport city and landside, and developing a forecourt with public transport as prime connection to the GMC. 
• Airside pre-concept and concept design work, which considered the challenging site topography, and was fully aligned with the master plan and the passenger terminal building concept design. The airside design has been instrumental in reducing earthworks volumes, improving the feasibility of the project and reducing its ecological footprint.