Pakistan to Open New Islamabad Airport in 2014

Dubai, May 24 -- At a seminar held on the sidelines of The Airport Show-2012 running at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre (DICEC) until Thursday, a senior Pakistani civil aviation official has announced details about the airports developments in the Islamic republic, especially the upcoming Benazir Bhutto International Airport (BBIA) in Islamabad.

Mr. V S Sodha, Project Director of BBIA, said: "Work is currently underway on the new airport which is located 30 kilometers southwest of the existing one in Islamabad. The new state-of-the- art facility will be airy and user-friendly as many unique innovative design features have been included in the airport facility. The facility is expected to handle nine million passengers in the first year of operation, 15 million by 2019 and an estimated 25 million passengers by 2024." The new 3,200-acre (13 square kilometers) airport site is situated on a plot of land acquired by the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) in the 1980s at Pind Ranjah near Fateh Jang (an additional 400 acres have been acquired to build the two runways). The Phase II of the project is underway. It will have car parking for 2,000 vehicles, a covered plaza area for 200 cars, a control tower, maintenance hangar, a 15-gate terminal with ten remote gates, 42 immigration counters, nine baggage claim Carousels, 12 X-ray machines and office and administration facilities. There will also be a hotel, convention centre, duty-free shops, airside mall, business centre, food court, leisure facilities and banks at the new terminal. The airport will have an 180,000 square metre modular terminal building which will initially be able to handle nine million passengers a year. There will also be a cargo complex capable of handling 100,000 tonnes a year, four rapid-exit taxiways, apron parking sufficient for the contact stands, underground cable network, parking for ground handling vehicles, secure cargo areas and major airport road infrastructure. The airport infrastructure was designed by ADPI (Aeroports de Paris ingenierie) along with Acorp, Mushtaq and Bilal Mahboob Associates. The terminal building was designed by CPG Corporation of Singapore in a joint venture with National Engineering Services Pakistan. This will be the first Greenfield airport ever constructed in Pakistan. The Benazir Bhutto terminal building is being constructed on a modular basis for easy future expansion. The first test flight to check the runway at the new airport took place on March 15. The new airport will have bigger halls as compared to Jinnah and Allama Iqbal terminals in Karachi and Lahore and will handle 6.5 million passengers annually. The construction of two runways have been completed; however, the remaining work is in progress and likely to complete by end of June 2013.This airport will be a modern landmark structure representing the 21st century Pakistan, as it will be the diplomatic and business gateway to Pakistan through the capital city of Islamabad. The construction of the airport costing over Rs60 billion was started in April, 2007. Former President Pervez Musharraf and former Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz laid the foundation of the airport. The PPP-led government renamed it as New Benazir Bhutto International Airport in 2008. The project was to be completed by 2010; however, it remained plagued with problems of water, land acquisition and transportation. The CAA director general admitted that the construction work remained slow in the past. The contract of terminal construction was awarded in May last year and it would be completed in 2013.The Multan airport will also be upgraded and it will include a new runway and more than $70m investment will be involved with this city's airport project.

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