April opening for US$150m Vic Falls Airport

Chief Reporter
Construction of the new US$150 million Victoria Falls International Airport is about 98 percent complete, with its official opening set for April 2016, Transport and Infrastructure Development Minister Dr Joram Gumbo has said.
The airport was initially expected to be officially opened during Zanu-PF Annual National People’s Conference earlier this month, but the ceremony was moved forward to allow final “touch ups”.
With capacity to handle more than 1,7 million passengers annually, the airport is set to give fresh impetus to the iconic Victoria Falls and boost tourism in the resort town.
Its construction was funded by China Eximbank, which provided a concessional loan of US$150 million payable over 25 years.
Dr Gumbo told The Sunday Mail, “The idea of postponing the commissioning of the airport from December 13 to a later date was because we decided that we now want to officially open the airport when everything has been completed and everything is functional.
“We have given the contractor up to March to finish everything and so I can safely say that by April we will be able to have a perfect Independence gift of officially opening the airport,” he said.
“I think the major work that is pending is the operationalisation of aero-bridges.
‘‘There was a delay in the arrival of equipment for the aero-bridges as it was supposed to come by December 7, but it now set to arrive by January 15.”
The airport’s 4km runway is complete and was certified ready for use as of December 8 this year.
The aprons – where wide-boarded aircraft are parked, unloaded, loaded, refuelled and boarded – is operational, while a new control tower is already in use.
A 500-vehicle carpark is open, although markings are yet to be printed.
Some of the pending work at the Victoria Falls International Airport includes completion of a new fire station, operationalisation of aero bridges and refurbishment of the terminal building.
The water system is undergoing a revamp and should be in tip-top shape by February 2016.
Dr Gumbo said a section of the old Victoria Falls Airport would be refurbished into a VVIP area.
“This is going to be a very big airport which matches international standards. Once it is completed, the terminal building will have retail space of 1 700 square metres, 30 retail operators, restaurants, interlink offices and lounges,” he said.
“It will also have a spacious check-in area with 114 check-in counters and fully-equipped security sit-in area. There will also be automated baggage handling for both departures and arrivals.
“It will have capacity to handle three Boeing 747 planes, 10 Boeing 737 and 18 aerial aviation aircraft at one time. The old terminal will be revamped into a VVIP lounge.”