Cape Town could get a second airport if plans are approved

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13-12-2023
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Eyewitnessnews
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Cape Winelands Airport general manager Mark Wilkinson said the new airport will be a closer backup to Cape Town International Airport. An environmental assessment is currently underway.

CAPE TOWN - Cape Town could soon have a second airport if plans to expand the Cape Winelands Airport in Durbanville go ahead.

The former SA Airforce airfield, which is now privately owned, is a general flying airfield which also houses a flight training academy.

However, major plans are now afoot for an expansion project that could see Cape Town with a second airport by 2027.

Cape Winelands Airport general manager Mark Wilkinson said the new airport will be a closer backup to Cape Town International Airport compared to Johannesburg-based OR Tambo International Airport.

"It will allow airlines to significantly reduce the amount of fuel that they carry, which has major financial implications from a cost perspective. They can also hold more revenue in terms of passengers and cargo."

Wilkinson said the new airport will also bring socioeconomic value by creating more jobs.

Head of planning for the airport, Adele Klingenberg, said an environmental assessment is currently underway to determine whether the plans will go ahead.

"We appreciate that it is a regulatory process and therefore the timeline hinges on a number of factors but from a planning perspective we anticipate that it will conclude by the end of next year."

Klingenberg said pending the outcome, construction will then go ahead in 2025 and at a cost of R7 billion the new airport should open in 2027.