President Shavkat Mirziyoyev today landed in Andijan province to inspect provincial development program and the living conditions of the local public, the presidential press service said.
Positive changes in the province are already visible from its airport. Andijan International Airport is undergoing modernization as part of Uzbekistan’s transportation infrastructure development strategy.
During the visit, the president was briefed on the progress.
Originally built in 1978, the outdate airport had had limited load-bearing capacity and lacked advanced lighting system with limited number of flights it could accommodate.
The reconstruction phase I has now been completed. A new 3,300-meter-long and 60-meter-wide runway, a taxiway, and aircraft parking stands have been constructed. The drainage system has been upgraded, and underground water has been redirected. Project is also underway to build a second taxiway and install radar, meteorological, and lighting equipment that meets ICAO CAT-II standards.
As a result, the airport will now be able to accommodate large aircraft like Boeing and Airbus models, even in poor weather conditions and at night. This will make it possible to increase the number of daily flights by up to ten times.
The phase II envisions the construction of a new passenger terminal. Once completed, the terminal’s hourly passenger throughput capacity will rise from the current 300 to 1,000. The number of annual flights is projected to increase from 584 to 3,700. This will significantly expand air traffic to and from the city of Andijan and the Fergana Valley as a whole, according to the presidential press service.
Currently, flights are being operated on the Tashkent to Andijan route from the reopened airport.
The president gave instructions to ensure effective airport management, reduce service costs, and expand both domestic and international flight options.
Uzbekistan is undertaking major efforts to modernize its airports. In recent years, airports in Samarkand, Termez, Urgench, Shahrisabz, Muynak, Kokand, and Zomin have been upgraded. Modernization projects continue in several other provinces.
