Hanimaadhoo Airport to open this September: Muththalib

Hanimaadhoo International Airport, which is being constructed under a line of credit from India, is set to finish by September as stated today by Minister of Construction, Housing and Infrastructure Dr. Abdulla Muththalib.

The project is currently at 88.7% completion, says the minister on a post he made on X (formerly known as Twitter).

He has said that the airport runway is now complete, with the passenger terminal reaching 83% completion and a 96% completion for the air traffic control tower, cargo building and hangar.

While not confirmed, it is being stated by other sources that the airport might even be officially opened on Independence Day, 26th July. While there were talks that Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi would make an appearance for the official opening of the airport, this has not been confirmed either.

President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu stated in a press conference in May that the aim is to complete the construction of the airport by 31st July.

Hanimaadhoo Airport is currently one of the largest airport development projects in the country.

The development project for Hanimaadhoo Airport was handed over to Kalpataru Projects International Limited, previously India's GMC company, in September 2022. The airport is designed to have a runway spanning 2.7 kilometers, the capacity to accommodate 1.3 million passengers yearly, a completely new terminal, an air traffic control tower, cargo building, hangar and fuel farm.

The construction of the airport is designed to allow even the largest available aircrafts to land. The aforementioned line of credit that has been given by Exim Bank of India is said to total USD 800 million, with USD 136 million (MVR 2 billion) going towards the construction of Hanimaadhoo Airport.