Africa-Press – Angola. The President of the Republic, João Lourenço, highlighted that the new Dr. António Agostinho Neto International Airport (AIAAN) is an infrastructure that will make Angolans proud and bring more jobs to the youth.
On his official Facebook page, the Head of State states that “today is a day of celebration! Let’s put at the service of everyone an infrastructure that will make Angolans proud.”
João Lourenço highlighted that it is the image of Angola that is projected across borders and an imposing work that will serve several generations, making it a “day of national pride”.
The Dr. António Agostinho Neto International Airport (AIAAN), located in the urban district of Bom Jesus, municipality of Icolo and Bengo, province of Luanda, was inaugurated this morning by the Angolan president.
The new airport, built 40 kilometers from the country’s capital, comes into operation in phases, with the first reserved for cargo services, until February 2024.
According to the operating schedule for the new Luanda International Airport, the 2nd phase begins in February 2024, with domestic flight operations.
According to the Angolan Government’s planning, the last stage, scheduled for June 2024, will be marked by the start of international flight operations.
In the first phase, the new airport will operate with provisional certification, as there is not yet sufficient experience in airport operations.
The phased opening of the new infrastructure takes place for security reasons, testing, certification and staff training, to assess real demand, procedures that help minimize risks and ensure a smooth transition to full operation.
The new airport infrastructure occupies an area of 1,324 hectares, has a capacity for 15 million passengers/year and a cargo volume of 130 thousand tons/year.
With two double runways, the airport is prepared to receive, among others, aircraft of the B747 and A380 types, the latter considered the largest commercial aircraft today.
The south runway (the largest), which is four thousand meters by 60 meters wide, received, in June 2022, the first experimental flight of a Boeing 777 type aircraft from the national flag company – TAAG.
In addition to the two runways, AIAAN also has 31 lanes, of which 19 are for international services and 11 are for domestic services, as well as 9 conveyor belts for baggage storage, six of which are dedicated to international flights.
The infrastructure includes 26 branches of the Migration and Foreigners Service (SME), a parking lot for 1,710 vehicles, as well as space reserved for shops, in an area of 1,825 square meters.
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