The plan for the 2021-2030 period, with a vision to 2050, was announced on March 5 by the Ministry of Construction Vietnam in cooperation with the Danang City People's Committee.
Danang International Airport is planned for 20 million passengers per year (Photo: Binh An).
Under the plan, the airport will retain its Category 4E status in accordance with International Civil Aviation Organization standards during the 2021-2030 period, with a designed capacity of about 20 million passengers and 100,000 tonnes of cargo per year. It will be capable of accommodating modern wide-body aircraft such as the Boeing 747, Boeing 787 and Airbus A350.
By 2050, the airport will maintain the same passenger capacity while increasing cargo throughput to approximately 330,000 tonnes annually.
The plan retains the airport’s two existing runways for both the period up to 2030 and the long-term vision to 2050. To improve operational efficiency, one rapid exit taxiway and two connecting taxiways will be added to reduce runway occupancy time.
Aircraft parking areas will also be expanded southward, increasing the total number of parking stands to around 52 to meet airlines’ future operational needs.
A new air traffic control tower will be built in the northern section of the airport near the K1 warehouse of Regiment 372, covering about 4,000 square metres.
Perspective of the expanded Danang International Airport with Terminal 1 (14 million passengers/year capacity), Terminal 2 (6 million passengers/year capacity), and a multi-storey car park (Photo: Danang City Portal).
The airport will be equipped with modern technical systems, including a VOR/DME navigation beacon north of the runway, a CAT II approach lighting system for runway end 35L and an automatic weather observing system.
Additional safety technologies will include runway incursion warning systems, multi-point surveillance, airport surface monitoring and bird detection and dispersal equipment.
For passenger services, the plan proposes expanding Terminal 1 southward to increase its capacity to about 14 million passengers a year, while the international Terminal 2 will be upgraded to handle about 6 million passengers annually.
A cargo terminal covering roughly 2.46 hectares will be developed in the northern area of the airport. It is designed to handle 100,000 tonnes of cargo annually by 2030 and up to 330,000 tonnes by 2050.
Other facilities include a 1.32-hectare aircraft maintenance and repair area and an in-flight catering facility of around 6,200 square metres. The existing aviation fuel supply system will continue to be used.
Transport links to the airport will utilise major roads such as Nguyen Van Linh, Duy Tan, Nguyen Phi Khanh and Dang Thuy Tram, alongside future underground road and urban railway connections under the city’s master plan.
The total land area allocated for the airport through 2030 and the 2050 vision is more than 806 hectares. Of this, more than 71 hectares will be managed by civil aviation authorities, over 516 hectares by the military and more than 218 hectares designated for shared use.
Le Quang Nam, vice chairman of the Danang City People's Committee, said the city had approved the investment policy for Terminal 2 after the master plan was endorsed on February 12 and was accelerating procedures to implement key infrastructure upgrades.
He said expanding the airport would support the city’s socio-economic development, particularly as Danang pursues major initiatives such as establishing a free trade zone and developing an airport city.