# Gelephu Airport (GLU)

> Gelephu, BT · IATA: GLU · ICAO: VQGP · Medium Airport

## Quick Facts

| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| IATA | `GLU` |
| ICAO | `VQGP` |
| City | Gelephu |
| Country | BT |
| Type | Medium Airport |
| Elevation | 299 m |
| Cargo | ❌ |
| GPS | 26.88456, 90.46412 |

## Description

Gelephu is best understood as a cargo gateway in waiting rather than one in operation: its 1,500-metre runway in southern Bhutan currently sees only Drukair domestic links to Paro, despite the international status granted in September 2023. The transformative plan is a brand-new Bjarke Ingels-designed airport at the heart of Gelephu Mindfulness City, sized for up to 1.3 million passengers a year and slated to open in 2029. For now GLU has no meaningful freight terminal, so Bhutanese air cargo still moves through Paro or by road across the adjacent Indian border. That proximity to Assam is the site's strategic asset, placing it on the main overland trade artery of the landlocked kingdom. Forwarders should treat Gelephu as a domestic field today, with international cargo relevance still several years away.

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*Freight Academy — Airport Profile: [https://www.freight-academy.com/en/information/airports/gelephu-airport-glu](https://www.freight-academy.com/en/information/airports/gelephu-airport-glu)*

*Markdown mirror: [https://www.freight-academy.com/api/md/airports/en/gelephu-airport-glu](https://www.freight-academy.com/api/md/airports/en/gelephu-airport-glu)*

*LLM-Summary (JSON): https://www.freight-academy.com/api/v1/airports/gelephu-airport-glu/llm-summary*