Construction of the new $5.5 billion (Dh19.8 billion) Doha International Airport in Qatar has begun with a ground-breaking ceremony, officials said.
"We are very grateful Shaikh Abdullah Bin Khalifa Al Thani, Prime Minister of Qatar, laid the foundation stone today. It signals the start of construction on site of this new airport," said Abdul Aziz Mohammad Al Noami, Chairman of the Civil Aviation Authority of Qatar and Chairman of the New Doha International Airport steering committee.
Shaikh Abdullah laid the foundation stone marking the start of construction on the 1,700-hectare site, approximately four kilometres east of the existing airport.
"This new airport will play an important role in the development of the aviation sector in Qatar. It will be an ideal base for Qatar Airways and other international airlines," Al Noami said.
"We are delighted to see work begin on this brand new airport," said Akbar Al Baker, Qatar Airways chief executive. "It promises to be a state-of-the-art facility in the region, and competitive with other airports around the world, when it opens in four years' time," he said.
"This airport will be custom-built for the new double-decker Airbus A380. Qatar Airways will proudly showcase this aircraft when it makes its maiden flight in our colours to the new airport in Doha in 2009," he said.
Bechtel, the US engineering and construction giant, was awarded the contract to build the new airport, which will initially have a 26-gate passenger terminal complex, two runways, maintenance hangar, cargo centre and extensive shopping facilities.
NDIA is scheduled to open in 2009 and will be capable of handling 12 million passengers a year, together with 750,000 tonnes of cargo. Once fully developed, the airport is expected to handle up to 50 million passengers and 2 million tonnes of cargo a year.
One of the project's key features is that 40 per cent of the site will be built on land reclaimed from the Arabian Gulf.
Qatar Airways will manage the airport, intended to help shape Doha as a key regional and global aviation hub.
The new airport will be the world's first to be designed and built specifically for theAirbus A380-800 double-decker "superjumbo" the largest passenger aircraft ever built. The A380 will be capable of carrying more than 550 passengers. Qatar Airways, a launch customer, will take delivery of the first of its four A380s in 2009, the year the new airport opens.
Gulf News
