VIA will be among region's best airports: Manik

Once Velana International Airport (VIA) is fully developed, it will be one of the best airports in the region, Chairman of Maldives Airports Company Limited (MACL) Mohamed Umar 'MU' Manik said Thursday.

The new runway of Velana International Airport (VIA) officially opened on Thursday. 

Vice President Faisal Naseem attended the ceremony held at VIA at 6.30am where an Emirates B777 aircraft landed at the new Code F runway which was developed on reclaimed land on the east side of the airport island of Hulhule.

The aircraft was welcomed with a water salute.

With the introduction of the new runway, the old runway will then be used as a taxiway.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the runway, Manik said while a lot of work is underway to develop VIA, once the project is completed, every facility at VIA will be new. 

"The airport is not in the same condition as before. The [runway] will enable an aircraft to land every 3 minutes," he said. 

Manik said the new passenger terminal building which is under construction is also necessary to develop the airport. 

"A cargo complex is being constructed under the project. This means that Maldives will also be a transit point for air cargo," he said.

"The future of this airport is very bright."

As part of the major project initiated by former President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom's administration to develop VIA, a new runway was officially opened at VIA in September 2018. However, the new runway had only been used as a taxiway since February due to the delay in relocating the adjacent seaplane terminal.

New runway project: