The ongoing development work aimed at converting the Cox's Bazar airport into an international one, is almost complete.
By June of this year, all the relevant works of the airport are likely to be completed, said officials.
The upgradation work is also making the airport with the longest runway in the country. This will also allow the airport to conduct flight operations round the clock. Soon, wide body aircraft like B-777-300 ER, B-747-400 can land at this airport.
According to project details, 80 percent of the project work has already been completed. But some new work has been added to this project. The luggage belt is increasing from one to two. The size of the terminal building is increasing, along with the air conditioning system.
For those new additions, the expenditure will increase by about Tk 90 crore. The revised project will be completed in June this year.
The cost of constructing the passenger building was estimated at Tk 277.88 crore. But due to the increase in project work, an additional cost increase of around Tk 90 crore has been proposed. The second revised DPP of the project involving additional expenditure is under process in the Ministry. The cost now stands at Tk 366.12 crore.
The matter was disclosed in a letter signed by deputy secretary of the Ministry of Aviation Dr. Saifur Rahman in February.
It is said that due to the increase in the scope of work of the Civil Aviation Authority’s own funding (Tk 277.88 crore), the construction of international passenger terminal building at Cox's Bazar Airport (second revised) project, a revised DPP with an estimated expenditure of Tk 366.12 crores is under process in the ministry.
According to the project progress report, the work of converting Cox’s Bazar airport into an international airport along with runway expansion is almost completed. Among them, land acquisition, land development, rehabilitation related works (bulk), existing runway, taxiway extension, runway widening, runway shoulder and over run construction etc. have been completed completely.
Of the total work, LGED’s bridge construction work is 99.90 percent, BWDB’s dam construction work is 99.95 percent, AirField Ground Lighting System-1, DVOR and ILS installation work is 99 percent completed, as per project report.
Cox's Bazar Airport Project Director Engineer Mohammad Yunus Bhuiyan said that the project work is almost complete. The runway of this airport has become 10,700 feet following 1700 feet expansion. Now Cox's Bazar will have the longest runway in the country. Now wide body aircraft like B-777-300 ER, B-747-400 can land at this airport.