Tawau Airport

A Borneo Airways Douglas DC-3 aircraft in Tawau Airport, 1964.

The old Tawau Airport was located on Jalan Utara (Malay for 'Northern Road'), about 2 mi (3.2 km) outside Tawau. The first flight was commenced in 24th September 1953, with a twice weekly flights from Sandakan by Malayan Airways, operated by de Havilland Dragon Rapide aircraft.

By the end of the decade, the airport was primarily served by Borneo Airways via a Scottish Aviation Twin Pioneer aircraft, linking the town to Lahad Datu, Sandakan and Jesselton.[3] The terminal 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 Douglas DC-3 and Fokker 27. In the early 1970s, the airport has begun serving international destinations to Balikpapan and Tarakan via Bouraq Indonesian Airlines.[4]

A decade later, the airport received its first Boeing 737 flight operated by Malaysia Airlines following the newly extended runway. The airport also received further additional direct international destination from Makassar in Indonesia by Merpati Nusantara Airlines in 1995 due to the close socio-economic ties between Tawau and Makassar.[5]

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 an informal settlement in Kampung Seri Menanti.[6] There were 34 fatalities, including two crewmembers.[7] 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 new Tawau Airport was opened to the public in December 2001. Direct flights to Kuala Lumpur was introduced a year later in 2002 and Johor Bahru in 2006.[8] In 2003, it was officially opened by the then Transport Minister of Malaysia, Tun Dr. Ling Liong Sik. With a capacity of over 1.4 million passengers per annum, it is the second largest airport in Sabah after Kota Kinabalu International Airport. AirAsia added an international destinations to Singapore in 2010 and to Kuching in the Malaysian state of Sarawak in 2018, although both were discontinued due to weak passenger yields. In 2018, 1,642,171 passengers passed through the airport and there were 15,579 aircraft movements.[1]

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. The new facilities also enabled night operations to be conducted, compared to the old airport that have limited capabilities on its runway.

In 2019, Tony Fernandes, the CEO of AirAsia Group is planning to connect Tawau with direct flight services to several cities in China, Korea, Japan and other Asean cities by 2020 due to its proximity with Tun Sakaran Marine Park, Mabul, Sipadan island, Maliau Basin, Danum Valley and other major ecotourism sites in southeast Sabah.[9] The airport also witnessed an additional international destination from Bandar Seri Begawan by RB Link in November 2019 and followed by charter flights to Guangzhou by Hainan Airlines by 2020. Correlating with the development, the Sabah Tourism Board has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to promote both Royal Brunei Airlines and Tawau for its marketing campaign in the United Kingdom.[10] Earlier, Assafal P Alian, the Sabah Deputy Minister of Tourism and Culture and Environment, has purposed on flight resumption between Tawau and Makassar due to strong demand for the route.[11] While in Indonesia, the head of Nunukan Deputy for Infrastructure has also requested a direct air link between Nunukan and Tawau after recording healthy annual passenger and cargo maritime traffic, with 30,000 passengers commuting between the two areas per-month.[12]

The airport is also slated for a further expansion after registering 1.64 million passengers in 2018, surpassing its original capacity of 1.4 million users. With 19.4% growth in 2018, it is the fourth in terms of passenger growth in the country (after Kuala Lumpur, Kota Kinabalu and Penang International Airport).[13] The expansion is expected to commenced by the end of 2019, allowing the airport to handle 2.5 million passengers annually with an upgrade to the existing facilities together with a better shopping experience.[13][14]

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

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Tawau Airport.

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