Beas Airport, Amritsar: Terminal, Code, Location, Connectivity and Amenities

Beas is a town on the right bank of the Beas River in Punjab’s Amritsar district, known in the spiritual landscape of north India primarily as the seat of the Radha Soami Satsang Beas (RSSB) — one of India’s largest spiritual movements, with a membership estimated in the millions across India and significant global following in the Sikh diaspora communities of the UK, Canada, the United States, and Southeast Asia. The RSSB’s Dera — the main centre at Bhaini village — hosts hundreds of thousands of followers for major satsangs and is a self-contained township with its own infrastructure. Within that infrastructure is Beas Airport: a privately owned civil aerodrome with a 2,377-metre paved runway, owned and operated by RSSB, carrying ICAO code VIBS and no IATA code, used exclusively for the organisation’s private aviation needs. No commercial scheduled flights operate here. The Ministry of Civil Aviation has identified Beas Airport under the UDAN scheme as a potential second airport for Amritsar, but that development remains prospective.

Quick Overview: Beas Airport

Beas Airport Location: Punjab’s River Plains, the RSSB Dera

Beas Airport is located in Bhaini village near Beas town in Amritsar district, at coordinates 31°33′38″N, 75°20′28″E, at an elevation of 250 metres above sea level — the flat Punjab plains of the Beas River basin. The river itself — one of the five rivers of the historic Punjab — flows nearby, and the landscape is the characteristic flat, intensively agricultural terrain of the Majha region between Amritsar and Jalandhar.

The Radha Soami Satsang Beas organisation’s Dera at Bhaini is a substantial institution — a campus that includes residential accommodation for followers visiting for satsangs, a hospital, schools, printing presses for spiritual literature, agricultural operations, and the airstrip. The RSSB’s global reach — with followers in North America, the UK, Europe, Southeast Asia, and Australia alongside its massive Indian membership — creates a genuine need for private aviation to facilitate the movement of senior Sant Nirankari Mission figures, visiting dignitaries, and international guest coordination. The airstrip serves this organisational aviation function.

The location 53.8 km from Amritsar city and approximately 35 km southeast of Amritsar Airport (ATQ) on the Amritsar-Jalandhar NH-1 corridor gives it reasonable connectivity to Punjab’s main highway artery, while sitting comfortably outside the controlled airspace of Amritsar Airport.

Beas Airport Code: ICAO VIBS — No IATA Code

Beas Airport carries ICAO code VIBS. No IATA code has been assigned — IATA codes require scheduled commercial passenger operations, which Beas Airport does not have. VIBS places it in the VI northern India block. The airport appears in the AAI’s national airport register and on the DGCA’s aerodrome list as a licensed private civil aerodrome. It also appears on the Civil Aviation Ministry’s list of airports identified for the UDAN scheme, though no UDAN route has been awarded as of mid-2026.

Beas Airport Terminal: A Private Spiritual Organisation’s Aviation Base

The most distinctive characteristic of Beas Airport is its ownership structure — a spiritual-social organisation rather than a government body, private company, or industrial corporation. The Radha Soami Satsang Beas, founded in the late 19th century by Jaimal Singh on the banks of the Beas River, has grown into one of India’s most widespread Sant Mat traditions. The Dera at Bhaini accommodates hundreds of thousands of followers during major satsangs — these are events of festival scale requiring organisational management at a level that private aviation serves for senior figures.

The runway at approximately 2,377 metres (7,800 feet) × 30 metres is notably substantial for a private aerodrome — longer than many UDAN-scheme regional airports and capable of handling business jets and medium turboprops without load restrictions. The 123-acre total footprint with a 6,043-metre perimeter reflects a serious aviation investment by the organisation.

There is no public passenger terminal. The private facility has the operational infrastructure appropriate to an organisational aviation base — hangar space, apron, and administrative support for the private jet fleet — without public check-in counters, departure lounges, or commercial amenities. Non-scheduled private flights serve the organisation’s operational needs exclusively.

The UDAN scheme identification is the most commercially relevant development in recent years. The Civil Aviation Ministry has included Beas Airport among airports where UDAN-capped fares and short-haul scheduled flights could be introduced. Separately, aviation planners have projected that Amritsar will need a second airport by 2040 given the growth trajectory of ATQ — and Beas Airport’s 2,377-metre runway and location on the Amritsar-Jalandhar corridor make it a logical candidate for that satellite airport role. As of mid-2026, no UDAN route had been formally awarded to Beas Airport and no satellite airport conversion plan had been confirmed.

Beas Airport Connectivity: Private Aviation Only

By Air: No scheduled commercial passenger flights operate from Beas Airport. The airport handles RSSB’s private non-scheduled jet operations exclusively. The nearest commercial airport is Sri Guru Ram Dass Jee International Airport in Amritsar (ATQ, IATA: ATQ), approximately 53.8 km northwest.

By Road: Beas town is approximately 5 km from the airport and approximately 55 km from Amritsar city via NH-44 (the Amritsar-Jalandhar National Highway). Jalandhar is approximately 45 km east. Travel time from Amritsar city to Beas Airport is approximately 1 to 1.5 hours by road. The Dera at Bhaini is directly adjacent to the airstrip.

By Rail: Beas Railway Station is on the Amritsar-Jalandhar main line of the Northern Railway, approximately 5 km from the airport. Trains connect Beas to Amritsar (approximately 45 minutes), Jalandhar (approximately 30 minutes), Delhi, and other major cities on the Grand Trunk Railway corridor.

Beas Airport Amenities: Private Organisational Facility

There are no public passenger amenities at Beas Airport. The private aerodrome serves the Radha Soami Satsang Beas organisation’s aviation needs with the operational infrastructure an organisational private airfield requires: a substantial runway, hangar facilities, apron, and administrative support. No check-in counters, departure lounges, food services, or commercial ground transport desks exist for public use.

If the UDAN scheme routes are eventually operationalised at Beas Airport — whether through the RSSB making the facility available for scheduled use or through a satellite airport conversion — the infrastructure investment required would primarily be a public-facing terminal building and navigational aid installation, both of which are achievable given the substantial existing runway.

FAQs: Beas Airport

Q1. Does Beas Airport have an IATA code?

No. Beas Airport carries only the ICAO code VIBS. No IATA code has been assigned as the airport has no scheduled commercial passenger operations.

Q2. Who owns Beas Airport and what is it used for?

Beas Airport is owned and operated by Radha Soami Satsang Beas (RSSB) — one of India’s largest spiritual organisations headquartered at Bhaini village near Beas. The airport is used exclusively for RSSB’s private non-scheduled jet operations.

Q3. Could Beas Airport become a commercial airport?

The Civil Aviation Ministry has identified Beas Airport under the UDAN scheme for potential UDAN-capped commercial flights. Aviation planners also cite it as a potential satellite second airport for Amritsar. Its 2,377-metre runway is already commercially capable. No UDAN route had been awarded as of mid-2026.

Q4. How long is the runway at Beas Airport?

Approximately 2,377 metres (7,800 feet) × 30 metres of paved surface — a substantial runway that comfortably supports business jets and medium turboprops, and would support ATR-72 class commercial operations.

Q5. What is the nearest commercial airport to Beas?

Sri Guru Ram Dass Jee International Airport in Amritsar (IATA: ATQ) at approximately 53.8 km is the nearest commercial airport, serving extensive domestic and international routes including London, Dubai, Toronto, and major Indian cities.