3,000 billion VND invested in upgrading Vinh International Airport.

Overview of the working session. Photo: Thu Huyen

On the afternoon of October 10th, the People's Committee of Nghe An province held a working session with a delegation from the Vietnam Airports Corporation, led by General Director Vu The Phiệt, regarding the investment and development project for Vinh International Airport.

Attending the working session, on the Nghe An province side were: Nguyen Dac Vinh - Member of the Central Committee of the Party, Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee; Thai Thanh Quy - Alternate Member of the Central Committee of the Party, Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee; Huynh Thanh Dien - Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee, along with representatives from relevant departments and agencies.

Comrade Nguyen Dac Vinh, Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, expressed strong agreement with the investment plan to upgrade Vinh International Airport. Photo: Thu Huyen

Vinh Airport plays a crucial role in the development of Nghe An and Ha Tinh provinces and the surrounding region, particularly in serving tourism and attracting investment. Currently, the Vinh Airport terminal is reaching its capacity, becoming overloaded during peak hours and struggling to handle international flights.

In response to development needs, the Ministry of Transport has agreed to upgrade Vinh International Airport with a total investment of approximately 3,000 billion VND. Specifically: The project includes the construction of Terminal 2, with a designed capacity of 5 million passengers per year, including 1 million international passengers and 4 million domestic passengers; the total floor area of ​​the terminal is approximately 16,500m².²The estimated total investment is approximately 1,681 billion VND.

Vinh International Airport currently has 7 flight routes. (Photo: Archival image)

Passengers wait to check in at Vinh International Airport. Photo: Thu Huyen.

The project to build an aircraft parking apron in front of Terminal 2, with a designed capacity of 7 Code E aircraft parking positions and 2 Code C aircraft parking positions, has a total investment of approximately VND 1,001 billion. These projects are expected to have the land handed over no later than the end of Q2/2019, commence construction in Q3 2019, and be completed and put into operation in Q4 2020.

Vietnam Airports Corporation General Director Vu The Phiệt expressed his hope that the province would support and expedite the land clearance process and handover of land for the implementation of the projects. Photo: Thu Huyen

In addition, investment projects at Vinh Airport include: the project to renovate and upgrade the aviation technology line from a domestic passenger terminal to an international passenger terminal (51 billion VND); the project to install passenger boarding bridges to increase convenience and improve the actual operating capacity of the existing terminal (116 billion VND); and the project to expand and renovate the existing aircraft parking apron (245 billion VND).

Speaking at the meeting, Provincial Party Secretary Nguyen Dac Vinh and Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Thai Thanh Quy affirmed the necessity of expanding the planning, renovating, and upgrading several components of Vinh International Airport, as it is currently becoming overloaded. They requested that the Departments of Transport, Natural Resources and Environment, Construction, and Vinh City coordinate to complete land clearance, land handover, and other work items to implement the projects.

Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee, Thai Thanh Quy, requested the Vietnam Airports Corporation to direct the construction unit to accelerate progress and ensure the project is completed and put into operation. Photo: Thu Huyen

Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee, Thai Thanh Quy, specifically noted that relevant parties should pay attention to land clearance issues; and that the land clearance sub-project, with the City People's Committee as the investor, should be completed before October 30, 2018.

Comrade Thai Thanh Quy also requested that the Vietnam Airports Corporation expedite procedures to approve the detailed construction plan by December 2018 and the project by February 2019. He also requested coordination with the Vinh City People's Committee in land clearance work, resolving issues related to land clearance and construction; promptly allocating funds to compensate for land clearance; and being responsible for managing and using the allocated land area in accordance with the law.

General Director of Vietnam Airports Corporation Vu The Phiệt presents flowers to congratulate the new Chairman of the People's Committee of Nghe An province, Thai Thanh Quy. Photo: Thu Huyen.

Regarding the project to renovate and upgrade the inner-city international passenger terminal: instruct the construction unit to accelerate progress to ensure completion and commissioning by December 2018.

"Regarding the second runway, the Vietnam Airports Corporation should promptly study and report to the Ministry of Transport for early investment, as the first runway has been in operation for a long time and is becoming increasingly overloaded; at the same time, the planning layout of Vinh International Airport should be adjusted," suggested Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Thai Thanh Quy.

Vinh International Airport currently has 7 routes, with approximately 34 flights per day, both arriving and departing. In 2017, the airport handled 1.8 million passengers; in the first nine months of 2018, this figure is projected to reach 1.44 million. Currently, there are two international routes to Laos and Thailand.