TUESDAY-11TH DECEMBER 2007-AIRPORT UPGRADE PROGRESSESS NICELY

AIRPORT UPGRADE PROGRESSESS NICELY
Existing operations to shift to new main building soon
KOTA KINABALU:
The operation at the existing Terminal One of the Kota Kinabalu International Airport (KKIA) will be shifted in stages to the new terminal main building starting next month to help ease congestions, said Transport Minister Datuk Seri Chan Kong Choy. He said starting January 22, passengers will be boarding their planes from the nearly completed main terminal but all check- ins will still remain at the existing building until all works are fully completed in April. “Once the new international terminal block is ready, the current old terminal will be closed fully to allow for the upgrading,” said Chan. The new terminal building which will be connected with the old terminal block is part of the upgrading project on the KKIA which also involves a runway extension and construction of a new low cost terminal costing RM1.2 billion. Speaking to reporters after visiting KKIA yesterday, Chan said he was very happy with the progress of both Package One and Two of the upgrading project. He said progress on Package Two which includes the construction of air-side infrastructures is now at 65 percent, about eight percent ahead of plan and expected to be fully completed by April next year. However works on Package One, which includes the building of the main terminal building and landslide infrastructure and facilities, has experienced a slight delay, according to him. “Despite a slight delay in some part of the Package One, we are catching up and everything will be completed by May as planned,” he said. Works on Package One is currently 49.35 percent completed. It involves the extension of the runway from the current 2,988 metres to 3,780 metres to enable Boeing 747 aircraft to land; construction of parking aprons which can accommodate four Boeing 747s, one AB330, seven Boeing 737s, three F50s and three Dorniers. It also includes the upgrading of existing taxiway the northern side, stretched 1,474 metres while the south some 792 metres, and the construction of new Traffic Control tower and cargo terminal and transmail cargo centre and new Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) office. “There are still some issues (to be solved) including the relocation of equipment from the existing terminal to the new one but I’m confident that with the very close cooperation between all the parties such as Malaysia Airports Berhad, the Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) and the two main contractors, it can be settled without problem. “So we can expect to have a very efficient and state-of-the-art airport by May 2009, and this is very important for the development of the State,” he said. Chan expressed his appreciation to the Sabah Government for its support and assistance for the upgrading project, particularly in successfully relocating Sri Tanjung squatters to pave the way for the expansion of the runway. He also thanked the public for their support in bearing with the inconvenience since the upgrading works started, adding, it is not easy to carry out a massive upgrading works on an operational airport.
“Unlike in other places, we are doing works on a live airport. Moreover, this is the second busiest airport in the country after KLIA,” he said. He said the existing terminal is designed to handle around three million passengers but has so far handled more than four million passengers this year. On the decison of Malaysia Airports to move operations of all airlines to the new terminal once completed in 2009, he said they would be looking at AirAsia’s request to remain at Terminal Two instead of moving to the international terminal complex. “They have written in. We have to hear them out before we make any decision,” he said, adding that the new complex when completed would be handling the needs of all airlines and would be convenient in terms of operations.