The new international airport is planned to be built in Tbilisi, said Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili at a government meeting.
According to him, the airport will be built on the site of the former Vasini airport.
“We are talking about the construction of a new international airport that can become a hub. It should be a transit and logistics airport,” said the prime minister, the words of which are quoted by Interfax.
“We worked out two options: one – the development and expansion of the existing airport. But this airport has its own shortcomings, restrictions and does not give the possibility of really great development. Moreover, if we want to become an aviation hub in the region, this airport and its territory They cannot allow us this. Therefore, we raised this issue at the Economic Council and came to the conclusion that if we want to take care of the country in the future 20, 30, 50, even 100 years, to leave proper infrastructure and airport to our future generations, we must choose a new Place. Such a place in Tbilisi is the former airport of Vazani. According to the Ministry of Economy, the Ministry of Economy is actively working in this direction, ”the prime minister said.
The current international airport Tbilisi named after Shota Rustaveli is controlled by the Tav Airports Turkish holding. It was modernized in 2007, the throughput was about 3.5 million passengers per year. In 2022, Tbilisi Airport served 3 million passengers, which is 78% more than in 2021 and is 81% of the 2019 Dopandemium indicator. The airport has two runways 1.5 km long.