Packed columns are widely used in the chemical process industries. The optimum operation of these columns requires an even distribution of gas and liquid flows. This paper describes a method for modeling the flow pattern which develops above the gas inlet system using a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) approach. The uniformity of the gas flow through the packing is assessed by means of a maldistribution factor, M_F. Several factors which affect gas distribution, such as gas inlet type, gas inlet diameter and the distance between gas inlet and column bottom, were analyzed. It was found that gas distribution is more uniform as the inlet diameter and bottom distance are increased. Comparison of experimental data with a CFD simulation for several types of gas inlets, such as straight, slope and bend inlets, shows good agreement.