Construction work of the much-awaited third terminal of Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA) will be inaugurated on December 28. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will inaugurate the construction work.
“Once the terminal work is completed it will facilitate 12 million passenger yearly to get service through this airport”, Civil Aviation Authority Bangladesh (CAAB) Chairman Air Vice Marshal M Mafidur Rahman made this comment.
He was addressing a press conference with media persons at the conference hall of HSIA in the capital on Thursday. HSIA director Towhid Ul Ahsan said, “As everything is on the right track, I hope the construction work will start in December 28, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has given her kind consent to inaugurate the construction work of the terminal”, he added.
“The construction work will take four years to complete, once the project is completed, we will be able to provide service to 12 million passengers more. Total 20 million passengers will be served through this terminal”, he further added.
Sources said around 12 passenger boarding bridges out of 24 will be constructed in the first phase. There will be 13 check-in belts. To maintain huge pressure and traffic, the connecting road with the terminal will also get new design.
There will be a rapid exit and connecting taxiway and main road beside Le Meridian hotel to enter the airport. Besides, a subway will be built to connect the Dhaka Elevated Expressway with the airport. It is to be noted that the project was approved by ECNEC in October, 2017. Earlier in 2015, the feasibility study report on third terminal was presented to Prime Minister’s Office. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina ordered to implement the project as soon as possible. Shahjalal Airport can handle 0.8 million passengers and 0.2 million tonnes of cargo annually.
The airport expansion project has been undertaken in accordance with the changing needs of the time. Once the project work is finished, the airport will be able to handle 2.0 million passengers while its cargo handling capacity will rise to 0.5 million tonnes. It is to be noted, feasibility study of the project began following Japanese Ambassador Masato Watababe’s meeting with the then Civil Aviation and Tourism Minister Rashed Khan Menon at the latter’s office in the capital on February 2, 2016.