Future Expansion
On 14 October 2005, the Kenya Airports Authority announced their plans to expand Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. Over the next two years, the authority announced that it would improve airport facilities across Kenya, especially at Nairobi.
The expansion project was prompted as Jomo Kenyatta airport's annual passenger flow topped 4 million, while the airport was only constructed to handle 2.5 million passengers.
The expansion of the airport will more than double its size, from 25,662 to 55,222 square metres (276,223 to 594,405 sq ft). Aircraft parking, which is currently constrained, will be increased from 200,000 to 300,000 square metres (49.4 to 74.1 acres), and additional taxiways will be built. The arrivals and departures section will be fully separated, and the waiting area will be revamped.
The expansion will increase the airport's capacity to 9 million passengers a year. The project will cost the Kenya Airports Authority $100 million. The World Bank will provide $10 million. The first phase of upgrading commenced on 29 September 2006.
The Kenya government is currently debating on a proposal to build a second parallel runway at the Airport. This debate was caused by an incident which closed the only operational runway for 1 day.
As of December 2011, JKIA has entered the first phase of the second runway construction. This including the demolition of several dozens of illegal dwellings to make way for the future runway.
Read more about this topic: Jomo Kenyatta International Airport
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