(BNP) - After more than 7 months of construction, the investor, local authorities, and relevant units are accelerating the construction of the Gia Binh International Airport project, gradually forming the infrastructure, aiming for the first phase of operation by the end of 2026, serving APEC 2027.
Gia Binh International Airport (Bac Ninh province) has a total planned area of approximately 1,960 hectares, with a total investment of over VND 196,000 billion, of which phase 1 is about VND 141,000 billion and phase 2 is over VND 55,000 billion.
Construction began on August 19, 2025, and after more than 7 months of implementation, the project is currently in the foundation construction phase, gradually taking shape on the ground.
The Gia Binh International Airport project is located across several communes in Bac Ninh province, including Gia Binh, Luong Tai, Nhan Thang, and Lam Thao, spanning a wide area.
The project has already established a large-scale construction site, with many components being implemented simultaneously on a large scale.
According to the plan, Gia Binh International Airport will be built to meet the 4F standard of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the highest standard for civil airports today.
It is expected that the airport will have two runways with lengths ranging from 3,500 to 4,000 meters, capable of handling wide-body aircraft such as the Boeing 747 and Airbus A380.
Gia Binh International Airport will be developed in two phases, with a long-term vision extending to 2050. Upon completion, the airport is expected to have a capacity of approximately 50 million passengers and 2.5 million tons of cargo per year.
Previously, in Phase 1, extending to 2030, the operational scale was determined to be approximately 30 million passengers per year and 1.6 million tons of cargo per year.
To support this roadmap, foundation work such as leveling, lowering the ground level, and flattening the surface are currently being urgently implemented on a large scale by the construction units.
The passenger terminal in Phase 1 is located on the East side, with a capacity of 30 million passengers per year, expanding to the West by 2050, increasing to 50 million passengers per year.
The VIP lounge has completed the foundation and piling work and is now moving on to the main structure.
The cargo terminal is initially located on the East side of the airport, serving the initial operational phase. In the long term, by 2050, this functional area will continue to expand in the same direction to meet the increasing transportation demand.
In addition, land in the South is reserved as a contingency plan, ready for the development of additional cargo terminals when operational capacity exceeds the design capacity.
The air traffic control tower is nearing completion of its main structure, approaching the topping-out milestone in the near future.
Here, the project involves land acquisition in one go for the entire planned area, and the land use purpose is changed according to legal regulations. The total land requirement is 1,884.93 hectares, of which approximately 922.25 hectares are paddy land with two or more harvests per year.
Besides the compensation, support, and resettlement policies stipulated by regulations, Bac Ninh applies its own mechanism to ensure the rights of the people and accelerate the project's progress. Accordingly, eligible households whose residential land is acquired may be allocated additional residential land for a fee, in addition to their resettlement entitlement.
The allocation of additional residential land is calculated based on the area of land reclaimed, with allocations according to different thresholds. Specifically, areas from 300 m2 to less than 600 m2 will be considered for a maximum of 1 additional plot; from 600 m2 to less than 900 m2, a maximum of 2 plots; and from 900 m2 and above, a maximum of 3 plots. The area of each additional plot will not exceed 100 m2.
Currently, National Highway 17 through the area still only maintains two lanes, which does not meet the needs of large-scale connectivity. In this context, the project to connect Gia Binh Airport with Hanoi is being implemented under an emergency mechanism.
This route is expected to be newly constructed for approximately 7 km, while simultaneously upgrading over 6.5 km of sections overlapping with existing infrastructure, expanding to a 120 m cross-section. The total land area used is nearly 290 hectares.
National Highway 38 (QL38) is an existing route connecting the Hanoi-Bac Giang and Hanoi-Hai Phong expressways with Gia Binh Airport. According to the plan, the project will add a new section approximately 7 km long, with a 120 m wide cross-section, connecting from Bac Ninh province to the intersection between the Hanoi-Lang Son and Hanoi-Thai Nguyen expressways (Ring Road 3).
The project will also expand the 6.55 km section coinciding with the Hanoi-Thai Nguyen/Ring Road 3 expressway to a 120 m wide cross-section, connecting to the Tu Lien Bridge access road, and construct two direct ramps, each with 3 lanes, 14 m wide, and approximately 2.5 km long, increasing connectivity to the Gia Binh Airport area.
Gia Binh Airport is expected to reshape the aviation infrastructure structure in the northern region, thereby redistributing operational pressure to Noi Bai Airport and increasing the transport absorption capacity of the Capital Region.
This will meet the needs of socio-economic development, ensure national security and defense operations, and facilitate important diplomatic events, including the APEC Summit in 2027.
