Departure
93%
vs 95% ▼ 2
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Gorakhpur Airport (VEGK) is a joint civil-military aerodrome in eastern Uttar Pradesh, operated as a civil enclave by the Airports Authority of India within an Indian Air Force station. It offers a single long, ILS-equipped runway and handles a growing number of domestic airline services alongside active fighter and helicopter squadrons of the Indian Air Force.
Gorakhpur Airport serves the city of Gorakhpur in eastern Uttar Pradesh as a domestic civil airport operating as a civil enclave on an active Indian Air Force base. The Airports Authority of India runs the passenger side of operations while the Indian Air Force retains ownership and continues to base fast jets and helicopters there, making it an unusual mixed-use field of interest to any pilot studying military-civil coexistence in Indian airspace.
The airfield lies in Uttar Pradesh, India, about 8 km from Gorakhpur city centre, close to the Gorakhpur-Kushinagar Highway (NH-28), and roughly 7 km from Gorakhpur Railway Station. As a civil enclave sharing infrastructure with an Indian Air Force station, the surrounding airspace reflects its dual military and civil character, with the base itself falling under the Central Air Command of the Indian Air Force.
Gorakhpur has a single physical runway, 11/29, measuring 8,987 feet with a hard surface. Both directions are lit, and runway 29 is equipped with an ILS, giving instrument approach capability for that end of the runway.
Pilots can expect an approach frequency of 122.7 MHz and a tower frequency of 118.5 MHz. An ILS serves runway 29, supporting instrument approaches into the field.
The airport lies close to the Gorakhpur-Kushinagar Highway (NH-28), which runs near the field, and Gorakhpur Railway Station lies a short distance away, providing a useful landmark for orientation when approaching the airport visually.
Gorakhpur Airport began life as an Indian Air Force station and continues to operate as a military airfield, with the Airports Authority of India running a civil enclave for domestic air services. The Indian Air Force flies No. 16 Squadron, No. 27 Squadron and No. 105 Helicopter Unit from the base under Central Air Command, with SEPECAT Jaguar fast jets and Mil Mi-17 helicopters stationed there; these units have taken part in routine exercises and search and rescue operations. The civil passenger terminal was inaugurated in June 2017 by the then Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath, and a further extension to the terminal building had its foundation stone laid in March 2021. There have been proposals to rename the airport as Mahayogi Gorakhnath Airport. A May 2024 report indicated the base was being upgraded to allow joint deployment of MQ-9B drones by the Indian Army and Indian Air Force, alongside Sarsawa Air Force Station.
Today the airport functions as a civil enclave within an active Indian Air Force station, handling domestic airline services from carriers including Akasa Air, Alliance Air, IndiGo and SpiceJet to destinations such as Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Kolkata. The existing terminal can handle around 200 passengers at peak times, and further expansion has been discussed. Military flying continues alongside civil operations, with fighter and helicopter squadrons based on the same airfield, so pilots should expect an environment shaped by both scheduled airline traffic and ongoing Indian Air Force activity.