<h2 class="blog-hed2 pb-lg-4 pb-3 text-lg-center">History Blaise Diagne International Airport</h2>
<p class="blog-para">The airport was originally expected to be operational at the end of the year 2011, but this date was pushed back by almost a year in September of that year. In September 2012, Senegalese Prime Minister Abdoul Mbaye announced that the airport would open in the first quarter of 2014. In January 2015, word spread that the airport would open in June 2015. On April 4, 2015 Reuters announced a new opening date for early 2016. The expected building costs rose to 566 million euros, with over 400 million coming from the Saudi Binladin Group. The airport finally opened for scheduled operations on December 7, 2017.</p>
<p class="blog-para">Blaise Diagne International Airport (AIBD) is a new international airport in Dakar, the capital city of Senegal. The site is developed on 4,500ha of land in Ndiass village, approximately 50km south-east of Dakar city. It is owned by the Government of Senegal.</p>
<p class="blog-para">The airport&rsquo;s construction initially began in April 2007. German company Fraport won a contract in 2007 to operate the airport, in collaboration with an international consortium, for a period of 25 years.</p>
<p class="blog-para">However, Fraport withdrew the concession contract in 2015 following a halt in construction for several months, which was caused by a financial dispute between the government and construction contractor Saudi Bin Laden Group.</p>
<p class="blog-para">A consortium formed by Turkish firms Limak and Summa subsequently won a contract to complete the construction works under a subcontract from Saudi Bin Laden Group in April 2016. The consortium also agreed to operate the airport for a 25-year period.</p>
<h2 class="blog-hed2 pb-lg-4 pb-3">Details of Blaise Diagne International Airport</h2>
<p class="blog-para">Blaise Diagne International Airport is developed in two phases with an investment of approximately $575m. Phase one of the project is covered in an area of 2,600ha.</p>
<p class="blog-para">The airport features a 42,000m&sup2; passenger terminal building with six gates and six remote stands. The terminal has two levels, one for arrivals and the other for departures.</p>
<p class="blog-para">It has the capacity to accommodate up to three million passengers a year in the first phase, while the second phase will increase the site&rsquo;s capacity to ten million a year by 2035.</p>
<p class="blog-para">AIBD also has the capacity to handle 50,000t of cargo and 80,000 aircraft movements annually. It has three duty-free shops run by Lagard&egrave;re Travel Retail.</p>
<p class="blog-para">A 12,800m&sup2; cargo terminal building is constructed to the south-west of the runway to accommodate freight, which incorporates a number of storage areas, freezers, office facilities and electromechanical service areas.</p>
<p class="blog-para">An air traffic control tower and a technical facility is located to the east of the passenger terminal, while a 4,600m&sup2; presidential pavilion is added to the north side.</p>
<p class="blog-para">The airport also features a Hajj terminal, a parallel taxiway system, airport access routes, 60km of internal roads, and various other support facilities.</p>
<p class="blog-para">A second passenger terminal building and an additional 3.5km-long, 75m-wide second runway are planned for development at a later date.</p>
<h2 class="blog-hed2 pb-lg-4 pb-3">Apron and runways at Blaise Diagne airport</h2>
<p class="blog-para">The airport features a single 3.5km-long, 75m-wide runway with accompanying traffic lanes.</p>
<p class="blog-para">The apron area is designed to house up to 50 aircraft, including 26 large aircraft such as Airbus A380 and 18 general aviation aircraft, as well as six small and medium-sized aircraft such as Airbus A320.</p>
<p class="blog-para">A 9,350m&sup2; aircraft hangar is built in order to house large aircraft for freight and cargo services.</p>
<p class="blog-para">Work on the development was finally resumed in November 2016 and the airport was commissioned in December 2017.</p>
<p><img class="img-fluid p-lg-0 rounded w-100" title="Details of Blaise Diagne International Airport" src="../../main/img/airport/bla/b1.webp" alt="Details of Blaise Diagne International Airport"></p>