09 March 2003
AMBITIOUS plans to upgrade the Bahrain International Airport will continue on schedule despite war tremors in the region, the Minister of Transportation, Shaikh Ali bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, has promised.
The minister extended the promise through Civil Aviation Undersecretary Captain Abdulrahman Al Gaoud who has recently briefed airline representatives on progress on the airport's multi-million dollar facelift which will include a new runway, a new state-of-the-art control tower and re-designing of the area surrounding the airport with a shopping mall, multistorey car park and cineplex. There is also an ongoing IT enhancement programme and the installation of a sophisticated passenger baggage tracking system that the Civil Aviation Authorities plan to install.
"We are committed to the expansion and improvement of facilities and the present crisis in the region is not going to delay any of the work," Captain Al Gaoud said. "The minister is very keen that the airport should develop as a regional hub for civil aviation and the ‘open skies' policy that he initiated has already seen results."
The expansion includes the emergency runway involving BD8.2 million, one-third of which has been paid for. "The construction of the 2.5km long and 45 metres wide emergency runway is important because the existing runway needs immediate attention for resurfacing. This project has been rated urgent by the ministries of Transportation, Works and Finance and National Economy and the Civil Aviation," Captain Al Gaoud said. "The runway will be completed by November 2003 and we will then have a runway where flights can land even in worst weather conditions."
The work also includes upgrade of airfield services including existing pit and chambers, protective concrete ground provision to existing ducts and sleeves and installation of new cables, diversion of an existing 500mm diametre BAFCO aviation fuel pipeline, installation of new airfield ground lighting (AGL) system associated with the upgrade including raising and recovery of existing light fittings, replacement of airfield signage throughout airfield movement area, new AGL fittings to remainder of parallel taxiway, new AGL control equipment to sub-stations and resurfacing of the remaining existing taxiways and upgrading of other existing airfield services.
Once work is completed, Runway 2 will be upgraded to allow Instrumental landing Systems and Runway 30 will be able to accommodate landing even in Bahrain's lowest visibility conditions.
The new airfield ground lighting will also be installed as part of the upgrade which will allow aircraft to land in the event of poor visibility conditions instead of having to be diverted elsewhere. The projects is being administered by the Ministry of Works, that is being advised by JacobsGibb of the UK, the consultants responsible for the design and supervision of the project.
BIA handles 580 flights per week and 54 flights daily. The overflying air space controlled by Bahrain, accounts for 3,500 flights per week, 14,000 per month and 168,000 every year.
The cargo section will also be extensively renovated with the building of three additional parking spaces for cargo operations and four aprons to handle up to 20 aircraft and six executive jets next to the cargo area - all as part of a BD1.4 million project. In the same area, blueprints have been prepared in co-ordination with the Ministry of Interior to acquire some of the ministry's land as part of efforts to enhance the cargo operations area with a new dual carraigeway, extra car parking and office space.
The new Airport Control Tower project is going on - it has been commissioned with a local consulting company and will come up to the south of the airport.
The most significant project being undertaken is a $115 million five-storey shopping mall and the largest car park facility in the Kingdom. To be developed by Optimum Development, a French company, the shopping mall and car park facility will be built in the car parking space currently situated between the airport terminal and the Gulf Air building. The land allocated for the project measures 40,000 square metres, and in place of the 920-car space currently available there, the new facility will offer parking slots for 4,000 cars at a time. In addition, the semi-circular building will house retail outlets, a large food court, independent restaurants, a cineplex and office space.
"This is an ambitious project to develop airport facilities and Muharraq. Shaikh Ali is keen that the infrastructural design should include easy traffic movement and segregation of traffic moving towards the airport and the streams moving towards the mall," Captain Al Gaoud said.
The arrivals and departure areas in the airport have been extensively renovated in a BD3-million facelift that is almost complete, giving the airport a sleeker, more passenger-friendly look that will help it when passenger traffic crosses the five million mark soon. The changes here include the brand-new Bahrain Duty Free area which has been designed as a sophisticated shopping area with a local ambience; new carpets and chairs in the transit areas; elegant and more visitor-friendly immigration counters which will also increase in number from the present 10 to 18 and an additional baggage carousel (from four to five) and X-ray machine (from three to four) to process security checks and luggage retrieval.
The present terminals of the BIA were last renovated in 1994 and have been in use since 1991.
The new-look airport is expected to facilitate better and easier passenger movement since it had been designed so that the transfer passengers using gates 16 and 17 could have a separate flow through the departure hall and the departing passengers out of Bahrain could have easier access to Gates 11 through 15.
The plans include at least five first class lounges in the area vacated by the Duty Free on the present mezzanine level and additional immigration facilities to facilitate "fast-track" clearance. Five airlines have applied for permission to maintain first class lounges and these will be given space along with Gulf Air in the old Duty Free area. More aerobridge "approach fingers" and first class check-in areas are also planned.
AMBITIOUS plans to upgrade the Bahrain International Airport will continue on schedule despite war tremors in the region, the Minister of Transportation, Shaikh Ali bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, has promised.
The minister extended the promise through Civil Aviation Undersecretary Captain Abdulrahman Al Gaoud who has recently briefed airline representatives on progress on the airport's multi-million dollar facelift which will include a new runway, a new state-of-the-art control tower and re-designing of the area surrounding the airport with a shopping mall, multistorey car park and cineplex. There is also an ongoing IT enhancement programme and the installation of a sophisticated passenger baggage tracking system that the Civil Aviation Authorities plan to install.
"We are committed to the expansion and improvement of facilities and the present crisis in the region is not going to delay any of the work," Captain Al Gaoud said. "The minister is very keen that the airport should develop as a regional hub for civil aviation and the ‘open skies' policy that he initiated has already seen results."
The expansion includes the emergency runway involving BD8.2 million, one-third of which has been paid for. "The construction of the 2.5km long and 45 metres wide emergency runway is important because the existing runway needs immediate attention for resurfacing. This project has been rated urgent by the ministries of Transportation, Works and Finance and National Economy and the Civil Aviation," Captain Al Gaoud said. "The runway will be completed by November 2003 and we will then have a runway where flights can land even in worst weather conditions."
The work also includes upgrade of airfield services including existing pit and chambers, protective concrete ground provision to existing ducts and sleeves and installation of new cables, diversion of an existing 500mm diametre BAFCO aviation fuel pipeline, installation of new airfield ground lighting (AGL) system associated with the upgrade including raising and recovery of existing light fittings, replacement of airfield signage throughout airfield movement area, new AGL fittings to remainder of parallel taxiway, new AGL control equipment to sub-stations and resurfacing of the remaining existing taxiways and upgrading of other existing airfield services.
Once work is completed, Runway 2 will be upgraded to allow Instrumental landing Systems and Runway 30 will be able to accommodate landing even in Bahrain's lowest visibility conditions.
The new airfield ground lighting will also be installed as part of the upgrade which will allow aircraft to land in the event of poor visibility conditions instead of having to be diverted elsewhere. The projects is being administered by the Ministry of Works, that is being advised by JacobsGibb of the UK, the consultants responsible for the design and supervision of the project.
BIA handles 580 flights per week and 54 flights daily. The overflying air space controlled by Bahrain, accounts for 3,500 flights per week, 14,000 per month and 168,000 every year.
The cargo section will also be extensively renovated with the building of three additional parking spaces for cargo operations and four aprons to handle up to 20 aircraft and six executive jets next to the cargo area - all as part of a BD1.4 million project. In the same area, blueprints have been prepared in co-ordination with the Ministry of Interior to acquire some of the ministry's land as part of efforts to enhance the cargo operations area with a new dual carraigeway, extra car parking and office space.
The new Airport Control Tower project is going on - it has been commissioned with a local consulting company and will come up to the south of the airport.
The most significant project being undertaken is a $115 million five-storey shopping mall and the largest car park facility in the Kingdom. To be developed by Optimum Development, a French company, the shopping mall and car park facility will be built in the car parking space currently situated between the airport terminal and the Gulf Air building. The land allocated for the project measures 40,000 square metres, and in place of the 920-car space currently available there, the new facility will offer parking slots for 4,000 cars at a time. In addition, the semi-circular building will house retail outlets, a large food court, independent restaurants, a cineplex and office space.
"This is an ambitious project to develop airport facilities and Muharraq. Shaikh Ali is keen that the infrastructural design should include easy traffic movement and segregation of traffic moving towards the airport and the streams moving towards the mall," Captain Al Gaoud said.
The arrivals and departure areas in the airport have been extensively renovated in a BD3-million facelift that is almost complete, giving the airport a sleeker, more passenger-friendly look that will help it when passenger traffic crosses the five million mark soon. The changes here include the brand-new Bahrain Duty Free area which has been designed as a sophisticated shopping area with a local ambience; new carpets and chairs in the transit areas; elegant and more visitor-friendly immigration counters which will also increase in number from the present 10 to 18 and an additional baggage carousel (from four to five) and X-ray machine (from three to four) to process security checks and luggage retrieval.
The present terminals of the BIA were last renovated in 1994 and have been in use since 1991.
The new-look airport is expected to facilitate better and easier passenger movement since it had been designed so that the transfer passengers using gates 16 and 17 could have a separate flow through the departure hall and the departing passengers out of Bahrain could have easier access to Gates 11 through 15.
The plans include at least five first class lounges in the area vacated by the Duty Free on the present mezzanine level and additional immigration facilities to facilitate "fast-track" clearance. Five airlines have applied for permission to maintain first class lounges and these will be given space along with Gulf Air in the old Duty Free area. More aerobridge "approach fingers" and first class check-in areas are also planned.
By Meera Ravi
© Bahrain Tribune 2003
