Netherlands, Chinese for BIA runway overlay
The Government would be soon signing an agreement with consultants hired to carry out repairs at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) during the January 6 – April 6 (8.30 am to 4.30 pm) closure next year. Airport and Aviation Services Ltd. (AASL) Executive Director Johanne Jayaratne told the Business Times on Friday that they would be signing a consultative award with Netherlands Airport Consultant (NACO).
The consultants for the project had been selected through a competitive bidding process based on price, experience and competency, it was noted. The local partner would be Engineering Consultants Ltd. The total cost of the project is approximately US$524,000 plus taxes, funded jointly by AASL and SriLankan Airlines.
In addition the overlay cost of US$48,600 plus taxes is also self-funded by AASL, Mr. Jayaratne said. The contractors for the project are China National Aero Technology International Group (CATIC) the contract for which would be signed next week, it was noted. Civil Aviation Authority Director General (DGCA) H.M.C. Nimalsiri told the Business Times that they would be having a coordination meeting with all stakeholders to discuss how to minimize the disturbance during the period of the closure. Further, he said that no airline has shown any interest in going to Mattala due to its isolation and issues in connectivity.
However, the Sri Lanka Air Force following discussions with the DGCA has agreed to shift its fighter planes to Mattala depending on the operational plan to take care of the national defense requirement. Authorities are also looking at increasing the number of self-checking kiosks to ease the congestion at the counters. The number of x-ray equipment will also increase to handle increased (mostly-night) traffic during the operational hours of the BIA. Mr. Nimalasiri explained that in case of an emergency Mattala would be available for flying over Sri Lanka and all foreign airlines have been informed of the airport’s closure during this period.
In the meantime, the authorities are still working with the airlines on the slots to be allocated for the respective carriers operating to the BIA though some have already mentioned their schedules identifying the flights cancelled and those scheduled. The national carrier on Friday said it was cancelling a few day flights to Singapore, Chennai, Trichy, Male, Cochin and Bangalore and back. Ten other flights that are being rescheduled involve flights to Beijing, Shanghai, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Trivandrum, New Delhi, Karachi, London and Jeddah. The travel and leisure industry has expressed concern over the closure but acknowledge that maintenance work is also essential for passenger safety.