HCMC wants a new airport fast

HO CHI MINH CITY The city’s People’s Committee is lobbying hard to fast track approval for Long Thanh international airport in Dong Nai province to help ease congestions at HCMC’s Tan Son Nhat Airport.
The committee deputy chairman, Nguyen Huu Tin, said late last week that the city’s transport facilities would be seriously stressed by 2020 making it even more urgent to speed up construction of an international airport in Dong Nai province.
“The existing infrastructure will be overwhelmed if Tan Son Nhat Airport’s handling capacity is raised from the present 20 million passengers to 25 million per year.”
To accommodate the additional 5 million passengers per year, the city must invest USD4 to USD5 billion to upgrade transport facilities, including an elevated railway and roads connecting the airport.
An expansion of Tan Son Nhat Airport, which is on the outskirts of the inner city, will affect the city’s urban development plans, deputy chairman said.
Construction of Long Thanh International Airport in neighbouring Dong Nai province with a scheduled opening in 2020 was a much better option, he argued.
Sixteen members of the State Assessment Council have voted to approve the report on investment in the Long Thanh International Airport.
With approval of the council’s majority, the council will submit the report to the government and the National Assembly for the NA’s ratification in its meeting in October.
Approved by the Prime Minister, 14 June 2011, Long Thanh Airport is scheduled to open to the public in 2020 after the first phase of development, according to Dong Nai Provincial authority.
The airport, to be built in three phases, is expected to be fully operational by 2035, with an annual capacity of 100 million passengers. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2015, and by 2020, it have facilities to handle 25 million passengers a year.
With an investment of more than USD10 billion and covering more than 5,000 ha, Long Thanh is expected to become a competitive international airport and a key entry point to Southeast Asia.
Funding for the project will come from government bonds, official development assistance (ODA) and private sources.
The airport, which will be located around 43 km from HCMC, will serve 80% of international and 20% of domestic flights, diverting a major chunk of passenger traffic from Tan Son Nhat International Airport.

sourced:ttrweekly.com