Burmese capital gets new airport

Myanmar opened a new international airport in its capital, Naypyitaw.  Naypyitaw International Airport (ELA) will be Myanmar's third international facility after Mandalay and the commercial capital Yangon.  It is located about 10 miles south-east of the city centre.

The airport was developed by Burmese construction company Asia World with technical assistance from Singapore engineering firm CPG.  Government sources said China provided financial assistance for the project, the cost of which has not been disclosed.  Construction began in April 2007, two years after the then military government announced it was switching the capital from Yangon to Naypyitaw, a city built in secret on a mountain plateau about 390km (240 miles) further north.

According to the Transport Ministry, the airport has a 3.6km runway, a control tower 69m high and 10 passenger boarding bridges and can take 50,000 to 65,000 flights annually.

The main airport in Yangon has a capacity of 2.7m passengers a year. www.myanmars.net

Index/Home page
 

OUR READERS' FINEST WORDS (All times and dates are GMT)

All comments are filtered to exclude any excesses but the Editor does not have to agree with what is being said. 100 words maximum