Construction of the Simon Mwansa Kapwepwe International Airport project in Zambia has been completed.
The Zambia Airports Corporation (ZACL) announced the project is 100 percent complete, awaiting to be commissioned by the President of Zambia Edgar Lungu.
The Simon Mwansa Kapwepwe International Airport has been built through a USD 397 million loan obtained from China’s Export and Import (EXIM) Bank.
Chinese company, AVIC International, won the contract to design an also build the airport. The ultra-modern airport’s design includes a 12,000 sq mtr terminal building with the capacity to accommodate one million passengers.
The airport also has room to receive some of the world’s largest airplanes such as the Airbus A-380, which has a longer wingspan than the Boeing 747-800, which the old airport could not accommodate. The premises has been equipped with several amenities, among them a 50 room hotel.
Other features include a 28 mtr high control tower, a category 10 fire station, aircraft hangar, and a 3.5 km runway. The new airport will be handling 8,000 tonne of cargo and 20,000 take-offs per annum.