President orders to speed up BIA expansion

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has instructed the officials to complete the construction of the second terminal at Bandaranaike International Airport(BIA) before the end of 2023.

Construction of the second terminal, which began in 2014, was scheduled for completion in 2017.  Experts in the field point out that many features of the design have become obsolete due to the occurrence of a delay in the construction.

Basil Rajapaksa, the Head of the Presidential Task Force on Economic Revival, says that it should be developed as a Smart Terminal with all technological facilities to suit the year 2023.

The President made these remarks at a discussion held at the Presidential Secretariat yesterday (September 30) on the future activities of the State Ministry of Aviation and Export Zones Development.

It was discussed in detail regarding the course of action that should be taken in the face of adverse impact on the airports and airlines caused by the disruption in the airline industry due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

President Rajapaksa instructed the authorities to complete the construction work of the airport as early as possible by working day and night utilizing the opportunity created by the disruption of airport operations. 

Annually over 15 million passengers will be facilitated with services and mission control following the completion of the second terminal. Arrivals and Departures will commence to operate as two seperate terminals with the construction of the 2nd terminal at BIA. It has been planned to install E-Gate facility to ensure a smooth and efficient service for the passengers.

In addition, a parking space for the passengers will be constructed adjacent to the airport. Mattala Airport has handled 270 flight operations since this January facilitating over 12,000 passengers. It was revealed that Sri Lankan Airlines has planned to operate 07 flights per week in the future.

It was also discussed during the meeting to provide hotel accomodations with maximum facilities for flight crew personnel in the vicinity of Mattala airport.

Plans have been devised to expand the Ratmalana airport with the installation of the latest technological facilities. Special attention was paid to promote Sandhathanna, Seethaeliya and Digana for internal flight operations focusing Central Province.

President Rajapaksa instructed the officialst to establish a Flight school in colloboration with the Civil Aviation Authority and Sri Lankan Airlines to train the novice pilots. President added that foreign students should be allowed to train as well.