Plan to build $228 million Lai Chau Airport announced

The Ministry of Transport and the People's Committee of northern Lai Chau Province jointly announced a plan to build the Lai Chau Airport yesterday.
According to the approved decision for planning the Lai Chau Airport by 2020 and forward to 2030 by the Minister of Transport, the airport would be built at Group 5, Tan Uyen Town, 60km from the southeast of the inner province.
The airport would be built to 3C standards under the international civil airport code, and to level 3 under the military standards for both civil and military purposes.
By 2020, the airport will be connected to the national civil airport network and will be a local service airport. By 2030 it will be an internal civil airport. Under the plan, the airport will have a runway of about 2,000m long and 30m wide—enough to receive F70, ATR72 and similar planes.
The VND4.35 trillion (US$228 million) airport spanning 117ha was designed with a terminal for 40,000 passengers and 100 tonnes of cargoes per year. By 2030, it will be upgraded to have a capacity of 110,000 passengers and over 300 tonnes of cargoes per year.
Though northern Lai Chau Province is a northwest mountainous province and a key position for economics, security and national defence, the province, which has about 20 ethnic minority groups, does not have an air or waterway transportation system in place. The province is connected only by National Highway No 32, which connects with National Highway 4D with many poor and rugged sections.
Because of this situation, it was necessary to build the airport, as it would be an important motivational tool to develop the province as well as to connect the ethnic groups in the area.
The airport is expected to come into operation in 2012 with a capacity to serve 7,300 passengers per year.