HCMC – The Ministry of Transport has proposed allowing localities to manage airports within their precincts, such as Dien Bien, Na San, Cat Bi, Vinh, Phu Bai, and Dong Hoi among others.
A representative of the ministry said on September 20 that the proposal was included in a draft plan to mobilize capital for aviation infrastructure, the local media reported.
Accordingly, domestic airports should be divided into three groups. The first group will include important international airports, such as Noi Bai in Hanoi, Danang in Danang City, Cam Ranh in Khanh Hoa, Tan Son Nhat in HCMC, Phu Quoc in Kien Giang and Long Thanh in Dong Nai.
The Government will maintain its ownership at these airports through the Ministry of Transport and the Commission for the Management of State Capital at Enterprises, and assign the Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV) to manage, operate and mobilize resources to invest in, repair and upgrade these airports.
The second group will include airports used for both civil and military purposes, such as Tho Xuan in Thanh Hoa, Chu Lai in Quang Nam, Phu Cat in Binh Dinh and Tuy Hoa in Phu Yen. Like the airports in the first group, these airports will be owned by the State and managed by ACV.
The remaining airports should be managed by localities to improve their sense of responsibility and make use of the potential and advantages of the localities to develop the airports.
The Ministry of Transport proposed piloting the project at the Cat Bi Airport in Haiphong City.
At present, all 21 airports nationwide are managed by ACV.
As for resources to develop the airports, the Ministry of Transport suggested not mobilizing private resources for essential facilities at the airports in the two first groups.
As for the airports in group three, the ministry proposed mobilizing private resources by transferring the airport investment and operation rights, while resources for the Sa Pa, Quang Tri and Lai Chau airports should be mobilized under the public-private partnership model.
Dinh Viet Thang, head of the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam, said the Ministry of Transport will still manage the policies, strategies and planning of the airports. The authorities of the localities will improve their self-control capability and take responsibility for managing and developing the airports.
ACV Chairman Lai Xuan Thanh threw his support behind the Ministry of Transport’s draft plan but proposed clarifying the decentralization of management.
