Cam Ranh airport goes international

Cam Ranh Airport in the central province of Khanh Hoa becomes an international airport on Saturday with the landing of Silk Airlines’ first flight.
The 750ha facility, situated 35km from Nha Trang City, has the country’s longest runway that can handle aircraft like Boeing 767, 777 and Airbus 321, 300-600 and a new VND200 billion (US$10 million) terminal with a capacity of 800 passengers per hour.
"Three Russian carriers – S7 Airlines, Vladivostok Avia and Transaero Airlines – plan to fly into the airport from next February," said Le Van Nghia, an agent for the three passenger airlines.
Local authorities and the Central Region Aviation Corporation have asked travel agencies to recommend international carriers to begin flying into Cam Ranh.
The largest number of visitors to coastal resorts like Nha Trang, Mui Ne and Phu Quoc Island are from the Commonwealth of Independent States, especially Russia.
Cam Ranh Airport received 50,000 passengers in 2007 and an estimated 70,000 this year.
Hotels in the province, including Vinpearl Resort&Spa, Novotel Nha Trang Hotel, Yasaka Sai Gon – Nha Trang, and Khanh Hoa Tourism Company offered 50-100 per cent discounts for passengers first arriving on international flights to Cam Ranh.
Authorities plan to build another runway at the airport by 2020, increasing its annual capacity to 5.5 million passengers and 100,000 tonnes of cargo.