T2 PROJECT

Noi Bai International Airport, Vietnam

Noi Bai International Airport, situated about 28 miles (45km) north of Hanoi, has a chequered history having been first built by the Vietnamese Army during the Vietnam war as an airbase for the Vietnamese air force to carry out attacks against the US air force. With the war over and the country reunified in 1975, the airport was refurbished and became an international airport for commercial traffic.

"Noi Bai International Airport is situated about 28 miles (45km) north of Hanoi."In 1995, the Prime Minister officially decided to build the first international terminal at Noi Bai. Terminal one began operation in October 2001 with a total ground area of 90,000m².

It was equipped with modern technical systems and able to serve 4,000 customers an hour during rush periods with a capacity of 6.5 million passengers a year.

The airport is administered by the Northern Airports Authority, which charges passengers a departure tax to offset airport costs. This relatively modern airport has two parallel 3,800m (12,466ft) concrete paved runways designated 11L/29R and 11R/29L.

In 2006, the airport received approximately 3.5 million passengers and accounts for one third of international departures and arrivals at Vietnam's three international airports. As one of the highlights of Vietnamese aviation Noi Bai received the superjumbo A380 in September 2007.

NOI BAI EXPANSION AND MASTERPLAN

In 2006 the Vietnamese Government approved a $236m project to build a new terminal (T2) for Noi Bai Airport. The Civil Aviation Administration of Viet Nam (CAAV) will administer the project and maintain the correct international standards in conjunction with the ICAO (International Civil Aviation authority).

The project is now in the consultation phase with the Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO), which is discussing the Noi Bai Airport master plan and T2 passenger terminal feasibility study with CAAV and the Northern Airports Authority. Consensus so far is that the airport should be developed in several phases to cope with changing technology and market needs.

"Noi Bai International Airport received the superjumbo A380 in September 2007."Currently, the airport can handle six million passengers annually. In the medium-phase the capacity should be expanded to 12 million passengers a year (2010), to be further increased to 20 million by 2020.

Noi Bai Airport has a capacity to handle a maximum of 50 million passengers a year and has area for an additional parallel runway in the south if required.

According to the JETRO study team, immediate development at the airport should focus on the construction of T2, which is to be an international four-storey terminal with a total floor area of 90,000m².

NOI BAI TERMINAL TWO

T2 has already been designed to provide high-quality services, smooth passenger flow, future scope for expansion, and enhanced security, guaranteeing commercial success. A senior architect of the JETRO study team said three designs for the terminal were under consideration, and would be finalised during the implementation stage.

T2 is expected to be completed in time for the 1,000th anniversary of Ha Noi City in October 2010. At this time the existing T1 terminal will be modified to become a domestic passenger terminal. The JETRO study team has also provided the modification plan for T1. The project is estimated to cost about ¥31bn ($297m) and be funded by Japanese Government ODA (Official Development Assistance). The project will also include aircraft parking zones, elevated roads and a multi-storey car park.

Actions underway include approval of the 'Noi Bai Airport master plan and T2 feasibility study', environmental impact assessment (EIA) and environmental clearance, land acquisition, applying for assistance from the Japanese Government, and conducting a feasibility study for the Airport Rail Link (ARL).

An ARL is necessary as the Thang Long Expressway would not be able to handle the increased traffic after 2010.

"Noi Bai Airport has a capacity to handle a maximum of 50 million passengers a year."ADDITIONAL FACILITIES

By the end of 2007, Noi Bai Airport will have installed an automatic luggage processing system and four passenger bridges, worth $26m, in the original T1 building.

The airport has also recently constructed a new Air Traffic Control tower (ATC). The new ATC is located on a 4,500m² site inside the airport development area. The project produced an 88m ATC along with a four-storey technical building with a basement. The tower is 10m in diameter and is fully glass clad.