The past few months has seen a flurry of new airport activity across the world, with the inauguration of Van Don International Airport on 30-Dec-2018 and the recent decision by the Mexican government to suspend construction works at the New Mexico City International Airport.
Asian markets will be the main driver of growth and the bulk of new activity is anticipated in that region, in particular China which is planning to develop approximately 200 new airports by 2035.
Looking ahead for 2019, The Blue Swan Daily presents whats we believe are among the most anticipated airport openings for the current and next calendar year.
Istanbul Airport
Istanbul Airport is the new airport serving the capital of Turkey, Istanbul. The airport features two runways and three taxiways, with a 90 million passenger capacity terminal. Development works will continue at the facility, under a four stage programme, increasing to six runways. The new gateway is located in the north-western part of Istanbul and will accommodate around 200 million passengers p/a once fully operational in 2028. Although Istanbul Airport commenced operations on 29-Oct-2018, with Turkish Airlines operating the first scheduled service on 31-Oct-2018, the new airport is not expected to commence full scale operations until 03-Mar-2019. Turkish Airlines will transfer domestic and international services from Ataturk to the new airport under a phased programme.
Palmerola International Airport
Located 112km from the Honduran capital, Palmerola International Airport is on the site of Soto Cano Air Base in Comayagua, Honduas. The site is slated to become Honduras' new international airport, serving Tegucigalpa. Following the completion of construction works, the existing facility, Toncontin Airport, will operate as a domestic airport whilst Palmerola serves international services. Spain agreed to provide financial assistance to Honduras for the construction of Palmerola International Airport. Construction of the new airport is budgeted to cost USD163 million. German-Honduran consortium Inversions Emco (Flughafen Munich) were awarded a contract to re purpose the military base into a civilian airport. Construction commenced on 06-Dec-2016 and is scheduled for completion by approximately 15-Nov-2019.
Beijing Daxing International Airport
Beijing Daxing International Airport is a new airport construction project which will serve Beijing, China. The project is expected to cost approximately CNY80 billion (USD13.1 billion) in total, with construction work commencing in Dec-2014. Once completed by 30-Jun-2019, the airport will have capacity to handle 45 million passengers p/a during the initial stages, 70 million passengers by 2025 with plans for expanding the facility into an airport capable of handling 100 million passengers per annum. Scheduled service operations are expected to launch by 30-Sep-2019. Meanwhile, an air transport-related economic zone is also planned, with an investment of CNY84 billion (USD13.4 billion).
Chengdu Tianfu International Airport
Chengdu Tianfu International Airport is a proposed airport development project that will provide the city of Chengdu and its surrounding areas with a second major airport. It is to be located approximately 50km southeast of city, at the juncture of Jianyang City and Jintang County. Chengdu Tianfu will have three runways with capacity for 40 million passengers and 700,000 tonnes of cargo p/a in the short-term. In the long-term, the airport will have six runways, including four parallel and two lateral, with capacity for 90 million passengers and 2.0 million tonnes of cargo per annum. Construction work is slated for completion in 2019 with the airport to commence operations in 2020. The total cost of the project is forecast to be USD12 billion. Once completed, Chengdu will become the third Chinese city to have two airports, after Beijing and Shanghai. Chengdu Tianfu will serve mostly international services.
New Luanda Angola International Airport
New Luanda Airport is an international airport development project being constructed on the outskirts of Luanda Province. It is also known as Angola International Airport and has been under construction since 2008. The USD3.8 billion greenfield project will be constructed on a 1324 ha site, 40km from Luanda and will feature two runways capable of handling A380 aircraft and 13 million passengers per annum. The opening was scheduled for 2015/2016, however Angola stated it is accelerating the development and expects to complete construction by the end of 2019. It will act as an alternative to the existing Quatro de Fevereiro International Airport.
