Vietnamese government has the intention to invest an ambitious us$ 16 billion in a the new airport Long Than to become a competitor of hubs like Bangkok and Singapore. The site will be larger than other Asian competitors with a 50 sq km site. In view of the rapid growth of Vietnam’s airline market it is of the highest importance the extensions of Long Thanh are starting soonest.
Approved on Thursday with a parliamentary majority, the airport near the economic hub of Ho Chi Minh City is Vietnam’s biggest and most long-drawn-out infrastructure project, designed to tackle chronic capacity shortages.
The new airport will be built in three phases over the next 30 years in order to reach a 100 million passenger capacity and up to five billion tons of cargo. The first phase is scheduled till 2025 and will include the construction of Long Thanh’s runways and terminals.
When these facility will be completed it will be able to handle 25 million passenger and 1.2 billion tons of cargo. Phase two will run till 2035 and the final phase till 2050. The new airport will take over the overcapacity of the present Tan Son Naht airport from Ho Chi Minh City.
“When looking at the population and economic growth, Vietnam has a lot of potential,” Lai Xuan Thanh, director general of the Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam, told Reuters.
