KANDAL: The Minister in Charge of State Secretariat of Civil Aviation, Dr. Mao Havannall, and other distinguished delegates of Cambodian airlines, foreign airlines and aeronautical service operator companies, conducted a technical visit of the site of the Techo International Airport on Tuesday, 14 June.

Minister Mao Havannall delivered opening remarks at the start of the visit, where he underlined that the main objectives of this technical visit were to explore the progress of constructions and to understand the future plan of launching operations of the Techo International Airport.

On behalf of the Royal Government of Cambodia and the State Secretariat of Civil Aviation, the Minister informed the visiting delegates that the constructions of the airport maintained its activities on schedule without any significant delays during the two years of the Covid-19 pandemic.

He explained that while air traffic of carrying passengers across the globe significantly dropped in 2020 and 2021 as a result of widely imposed travel restrictions intended to prevent the spread of Covid-19, Cambodia has started to see a rise in the number of passengers and flights arriving in the country, due to the successful roll-out of the national vaccination campaign and other efficient measures carried out by the Royal Government, under the wide leadership of Prime Minister Hun Sen.

The Minister stated that air traffic volume in Cambodia has currently reached about 40% of what it was in 2019, and added that the State Secretariat of Civil Aviation expects to see normal air traffic of carrying passengers return in late 2023.

The Director of Cambodia Airport Investment Co., Ltd (CAIC), Charles Vann, also delivered a welcoming speech and outlined some of the concrete achievements that have been made in the construction of the airport. He stated that Phase 1 of the airport’s development is progressing well, and has surpassed 33% completion with the CAIC incurring over US $461 million to date.

He further highlighted the status of some key construction elements, including the passenger terminal building which is 30% complete, the Energy Center which is 60% complete, construction of the runway and taxiways which is 25% complete, the brand new 118-meter height Air Traffic Control Tower which is near completion, and a new road 13.5 kilometers in length, which will connect right to the airport from Hun Sen Boulevard and is around 30% complete as well.

Once the delegates had been briefed and welcomed for the technical visit, they were taken on a short tour of the construction site to observe the developments made first hand.

The Techno International Airport is slated to be fully complete and operational by 2025, and is expected to be the capital city’s main airport, replacing the existing Phnom Penh International Airport.