Tribhuvan Intl
A Journey Through Time
1949 — 2024
1940s
1949
Tribhuvan International Airport opened in 1949 as Gauchar Airport — Nepal's first and, for decades, only airport. It was renamed after King Tribhuvan, who helped end the Rana autocracy.
1950s
1953
The airport became the staging point for the historic 1953 Everest expedition — Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary passed through Kathmandu on their way to becoming the first to summit the world's tallest peak.
2020s
2024
Despite being one of the most challenging airports in the world — surrounded by mountains with a single runway — Tribhuvan handled over 7 million passengers as Nepal's tourism sector grew rapidly.
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