UCAA targets six million passengers at Entebbe Airport

The Uganda Civil Aviation Authority(UCAA) plans to double the annual capacity of Entebbe International Airport to six million passengers per year, officials have said.

Giving an update about the ongoing expansion project, UCAA Director General, Fred Bamwesigye said the works are currently at 90% for the first phase, with new facilities in the pipeline.

“The overall works at the new 20,000 square metre terminal building currently stand at 60% but overall, expansion works at the airport are at 90%. For now, we have been able to increase the passenger capacity from 2 million to 3.5 million but in the long run, we want the airport to handle 6 million passengers per year,” Bamwesigye said.

Government contracted China Communications Construction Company to handle the expansion works of the airport at a cost of $200 million.

The expansion works include reconstruction of the main runaway and its associated taxiways, the rehabilitation of runway 1230 and its associated taxiways, rehabilitation of aprons, construction of cargo complex, construction of a new terminal building, increase water supply and storage capacity.

Taking journalists for a guided tour of the ongoing works, the UCAA Director General said they are currently trying to modernize the airport that was constructed in 1972.

He said by the time the airport was constructed, the passenger traffic was still down, and with an increase, there is need to expand the airport.

Eng. Ayub Soma, the Director Navigation and Airport Security at UCAA said part of their efforts is to enhance the runways to the biggest in the world.

“We want to enhance the runways to be able to accommodate bigger aircraft like A380 which have larger wings and it means if we do that our runways can move to the highest type of runway that exists on earth. By doing this, we are calling in more airlines to come to Entebbe Airport,” Eng.Soma said