A corner of Phu Cat Airport.
The Chairman of Binh Dinh Provincial People's Committee, Pham Anh Tuan, has just sent a letter to the Ministry of Defence to ask to transfer over 100 hectares of land to construct a new runway and some other works at the Phu Cat Airport.
US troops built Phu Cat Airport in the 1960s, and in 1975, the Vietnam People's Air Force took it over. In 1985, it began operating civil aviation activities.
"The only runway at Phu Cat Airport has deteriorated after 60 years and can only serve A320/321 and similar aircraft," he said. "It needs urgent repairs and upgrades, which may take up to a year and cost some VND1.40 trillion.
However, upgrading the only runway will mean that the airport has to be closed, affecting both defence-related activities and economic and tourism development."
Therefore, the official urged the Ministry of Defence to transfer 109.44 hectares of land to build a new runway and other supporting works for Phu Cat, meeting the province's potential and development strategies.
The province and the government have approved the plan since November.
Phu Cat Airport, located 30 kilometres northwest of the beach town of Quy Nhon, currently has a capacity of five million passengers and 12 million tonnes of cargo annually.
By 2050, it is planned to be upgraded to level 4E, which means a capacity of 12-15 million passengers and 27,000 tonnes of cargo annually.
The upgrade plans include a second runway primarily for civilian aviation, additional aircraft parking spaces, an expanded passenger terminal, and rearranged civil and military aviation zones.