Najran gets first generation airport

JEDDAH: The newly established Najran regional airport designed to operate international flights is one of the new generation airports in the Kingdom with state-of-the-art facilities, said Faisal Al-Sugair, president of the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA), after inspecting the airport on Sunday.

Al-Sugair met with GACA officials and discussed the measures taken for shifting operations to the new terminal. The new project, including passenger lounges for arrival and departures, was carried out at a cost of SR400 million. "The airport is designed to receive wide-bodied aircraft and will operate flights to neighboring countries. It has a capacity of 1.4 million passengers and 15,000 flights annually," he said. "We have implemented this project as part of GACA's efforts to modernize the Kingdom's aviation infrastructure facilities," the president said. The new terminal covers an area of 13,000 square meters where six planes can park at a time. There are separate passenger lounges for the arrival and departure of domestic and international flights. Three air bridges have been provided for the boarding of passengers. The project included renovation of the air cargo building and the lounge for VIP passengers. A new building has been constructed for support services. Earlier, Al-Sugair met with Najran Gov. Prince Mishaal bin Abdullah and discussed matters related to the airport development. Following the meeting, Prince Mishaal said the new airport would provide integrated services to passengers. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabian Airlines said it has started preparations for shifting its operations to the new terminal on Sept. 18. Abdullah Al-Ajhar, vice president for public relations, said the advanced facilities at the airport would help the airline provide better services to passengers.