In addition to its civil aviation, the runway is shared with theVietnamese People's Air Force (VPAF, theKhông Quân Nhân Dân Việt Nam), although military activities are now extremely limited.[2][unreliable source?]The airport served 5 million passengers in 2014, reaching that passenger count around six years sooner than expected.[3] An expansion of the new terminal is currently considered to increase its capacity to 10 million passengers per annum by 2020.[4]This airport handled 6,722,587 passengers in 2015, an increase of 34.7% compared with that of 2014.[5]
This airport handled 11 million passengers in 2017, an increase of 24.1% compared to that of 2016.[6] The airport has two separate terminals for international and domestic passengers, with a total passenger capacity of 11 million per annum as at 2018.[7] The Hanoi-Danang and Ho Chi Minh City-Danang routes have respectively 319 and 250 weekly flights and are, in order, the second and third busiest air routes in Vietnam after the Hanoi-Ho Chi Minh route (475 flights).
In 2024, it was ranked 94th in the list of World's Top 100 Airports bySkytrax,[8] certified as a 3-star airport with its international terminal rated a 5-star.[9] It is set to have the first smart terminal in Vietnam, under a partnership signed withFPT Software.[10][11]
Situated on flat, sandy ground on the south side of the major port city ofDa Nang, the area was ideal for an airfield, having unobstructed approaches to its north–south runways.Tourane Airport was built by the French colonial government in the 1940s as a civilian airport.[12] DuringWorld War II, and the Japanese occupation ofFrench Indochina, theImperial Japanese Army Air Force used it as a military air base.[13]
B-26C Serial 44-34109 of theFrench Air Force over Indochina, 1952. This aircraft was returned to the USAF in October 1955 and scrapped.
After the war, the facility was used by theFrench Air Force during theFrench Indochina War (1945–1954). In 1953/54 the French laid a NATO-standard 7,800-foot (2,400 m) asphalt runway at Tourane and stationed loaned AmericanB-26s "Invaders" of the Groupe de Bombardement 1/19 Gascogne. In 1954 after theGeneva Peace Accords, these B-26s were returned to the United States.
In 1955, the newly establishedRepublic of Vietnam Air Force (VNAF) inherited from the French a token force of fifty-eight aircraft. These included a few squadrons of Cessna L-19 observation aircraft, C-47 transports and various utility aircraft. Tourane Airfield was turned over to civilian use, with the South Vietnamese using facilities atBien Hoa,Nha Trang and atTan Son Nhut, nearSaigon.
In 1957 the VNAF re-established a presence at the renamedDa Nang Airport, stationing the 1st Liaison Squadron withCessna L-19s. TheSouth Vietnamese Army (ARVN) also used Da Nang as a ranger training facility.
Air Vietnam also used the facility from 1951 to 1975 for civilian domestic and international flights within Southeast Asia.
During theVietnam War (1959–1975), the facility was known as Da Nang Air Base, and was a major United States military base. Once little more than a provincial airfield, the facility was expanded to 2,350 acres (950 ha) with two 10,000-foot (3,048 m) asphalt runways with concrete touchdown pads. parallel taxiways, and a heliport.
The Vietnam-US joint project to clean dioxin pollution was completed in 2018.[15] The airport had previously seen high concentrations of dioxin in soil and sediment samples from the airport following the handling of Agent Orange and other herbicides during the Vietnam War.[16]
Inside the International Terminal of Da Nang AirportDepartures hall
Da Nang International Airport has two 10,000-foot (3,048 m) paved, parallel runways (17–35 orientation) capable of handling large, modern aircraft such asBoeing 747s,767s andAirbus A320s.[2][19] Traffic volume at Da Nang averages 100 to 150 flights every 24 hours. Annual traffic was circa 1.45 million in 2007 and is expected to reach four million by 2020.[20]
A new 20,000m² terminal, costing US$84 million with a capacity of 4 million passengers per year, opened to receive its first domestic flight on 15 December 2011. The feasibility study for the renovation of the airport was partially sponsored by theUnited States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA), and was completed byPriceWaterhouseCoopers in 2006. The new terminal includes five boarding gates, baggage handling systems, departure and arrivals areas,flight information display system (FIDS), common user terminal equipment (CUTE),fire detection systems and comprehensivepublic address andsecurity systems, including screening equipment. Additionally, one of the airport's two runways was extended from 3,048 metres (10,000 ft) to 3,500 metres (11,483 ft). After completion, and at a cost of US$160 million, the airport now has a total capacity of six million passengers per year.[2][21]
A new international terminal 2, covering 48,000m2, with a total investment sum of US$154 million and a designed capacity of 6 million passenger per year was put into use on 5 May 2017.[7][22] In 2026,Airports Corporation of Vietnam proposed major renovations for Da Nang, which includes the total reconstruction of the 35L/17R runway, which is structurally degraded, alongside the eventual expansion and upgrade of the 2 terminals.[23][24]
On 30 September 1970,Douglas DC-3DST B-305 ofAir Vietnam crashed into a hill near Da Nang while attempting to divert to Da Nang Airport due to weather conditions at its intended destination ofPhu Bai Airport,Huế. Three of the 38 people on board were killed.[59]
