The old Bintulu airport was built in 1955 in the town centre . It once held the Guinness World Record of nearest airport to town . On 19 December 2002 , the airport was replaced by a new airport , which is located 23 km ( 14 mi ) away from the town centre . The surroundings of the old airport were developed into commercial and residential projects while the runaway is reserved for Bintulu International Kite Festival . The new airport has a runway measuring 2 @,@ 745 m ( 9 @,@ 006 ft ) , capable of handling planes as large as the Airbus A330 . The airport currently serves three major airlines : Malaysia Airlines ( MAS ) , Air Asia , and MASwings , connecting to domestic destinations such as : Sibu , Miri , Kuching , Kuala Lumpur , and Kota Kinabalu .