The airport sits at an elevation of 1,457 ft (444 m) above sea level. It has one runway with an asphalt surface measuring 8,740 ft × 148 ft (2,664 m × 45 m).[2][3] It provides air transportation to the entire Loya Paktia region.[8]
There had been three major reported accidents, all of them during the 1980s mujahideen fighting and involved Soviet-made Antonov An-26 aircraft.[10]
In December 2009, seven CIA employees were killed in a suicide attack at the nearby Forward Operating Base Chapman (FOB Chapman). The bomber, Humam Balawi of Jordan, wore a suicide vest and blew himself up in the base, killing the base commander, CIA agents and civilian contractors.
Work to improve and expand Khost Airport began in late 2011.[11] Civilian passengers between Khost and Kabul were allowed to use NATO's Sehra Bagh Airport until Khost Airport was completed.[12] It was announced that the airport will become international in the future, taking passengers to and from the United Arab Emirates.[1][13]
The airport was officially inaugurated in July 2021 by then-President Ashraf Ghani,[14] who was there to personally welcome passengers of a flight from Dubai.
