PANO – The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam announced that Cat Bi International Airport in Hai Phong city was recently recognized as an international airport. The airport officially welcomed international flights on May 11th.
The airport upgrading project was implemented under Decision 21/2009/QĐ-TTg on planning an airport network approved by the Prime Minister on January 8th, 2009 and Decision 1232/QĐ-TTg on upgrading Cat Bi airport to International Airport as approved by the Prime Minister on September 7th, 2012.
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| Photo: bnews.vn |
Also on May 11th, the airport put into operation a new runway, airport runway lighting system, an extended apron and a terminal with a service capacity of 2 million passengers per year. The second phase of the upgrading and extending of the airport will be completed in the fourth quarter of 2017 for code E airplanes, such as Boeing 777, Airbus A330 and A350.
The project was carried out by Hai Phong, Airports Corporation, and the Vietnam Air Traffic Management Corporation. The airport is expected to meet the requirements of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). When the whole project is completed, the airport can serve 2 million passengers a year.
In the near future, the airport will operate more flights to Phu Quoc, Da Lat, Can Tho, Vinh, China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia.
In the past, the airport achieved an impressive growth rate of 20 percent/year. At present, Vietnam Airlines, Vietjet Air, and Jetstar Pacific are operating five domestic routes connecting Hai Phong to Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, Buon Ma Thuot, Cam Ranh, Pleiku and one international route between Hai Phong and several Chinese provinces.
The operation of new air routes will help Hai Phong and other northern localities to boost tourism and other economic industries.
Translated by Tran Hoai