On August 10, Lam Dong Provincial People's Committee said that it had sent a document to Vietnam Airports Corporation - JSC (ACV) requesting to allocate resources to invest in Passenger Terminal T2 and Cargo Terminal at Lien Khuong International Airport.
According to the Provincial People's Committee, the project to repair the runway and taxiway of Lien Khuong airport is being focused on removing difficulties, accelerating progress and is expected to be completed and put into operation before August 19, 2026.
After completion, the runway, taxiway and aircraft landing pad system will meet the operating requirements of a 4D-class airport and a 2nd-class military airport, ensuring the operation of aircraft such as A320, A321 and equivalents.
Upgrading the airfield infrastructure is expected to create conditions to expand international routes. From there, improve passenger and cargo transport capacity, promote tourism, logistics and socio-economic development of Lam Dong and the Central Highlands region.
However, the existing terminal infrastructure of Lien Khuong airport is revealing limitations. The passenger terminal currently has a designed capacity of 2.5 million passengers/year; the cargo handling area has a capacity of 6,752 tons/year.
In 2022, the number of passengers through the airport reached nearly 3 million, exceeding the designed capacity of the terminal.
By 2025, the number will reach nearly 2 million passengers and 4,655 tons of goods, approaching the effective exploitation threshold of existing infrastructure.
According to the province's assessment, after the airport infrastructure is upgraded, the number of passengers and cargo is forecast to continue to increase rapidly.
Therefore, investing in expanding the passenger terminal and upgrading the cargo operation area is necessary.
According to the approved plan, Lien Khuong airport is oriented to be upgraded to level 4E, becoming the aviation gateway of the Central Highlands region.
In the period 2021 - 2030, the airport is planned to have a capacity of 5 million passengers and 20,000 tons of cargo per year.
In which, Terminal T1 currently continues to operate with a capacity of 2.5 million passengers/year; Terminal T2 is newly invested with a capacity of 3 million passengers/year, along with a cargo terminal and a parking lot.
Lam Dong Provincial People's Committee requested ACV to pay attention to allocating capital sources and soon deploy investment in Terminal T2 and Cargo Terminal in 2027 according to the approved plan.
Lam Dong province is committed to directing departments, branches and localities to closely coordinate and promptly remove difficulties in investment procedures, site clearance if any, creating conditions for ACV to implement projects to ensure progress and efficiency.
According to the plan, Lien Khuong International Airport will reopen from August 19, 2026 after a period of temporary suspension of operation to serve the construction of the upgrade project.
It is expected that in the initial phase, the airport will operate an average of 36-40 flights to and from each day, connecting with localities including Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Da Nang, Vinh, Can Tho and Hai Phong.
The Da Lat - Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) international route is also expected to be restored with a frequency of 8 round-trip flights per week.
In the first day of reopening, Lien Khuong International Airport is expected to serve about 28 inbound and outbound flights.
