On 6 October, 2022, the ceremony for the commencement of new runway operations and the official opening of Noovilu Seaplane Terminal was held at VIA. H.E. Ambassador Wang Lixin attended the ceremony and highlighted that the expanded and upgraded VIA, an important BRI project signed by the two sides during President Xi Jinping’s state visit in 2014, would play a significant role in promoting the development of Maldives’ tourism & economy, and become another landmark of China-Maldives friendship.

H.E. Faisal Naseem, VP of Maldives, expressed sincere thanks to the Chinese side for the financial support and BUCG’s hard work, stressing that the projects will significantly promote the development of tourism and economy of Maldives. The Chairman and the Managing Director MACL also expresses their thanks to the Chinese side.

The new runway of VIA is the first 4F-class runway in the Maldives to meet the take-off & landing requirements of large F-class aircraft such as Airbus A380. Noovilu Seaplane Terminal will provide the Maldivian people with the largest modern Seaplane Terminal in the Maldives.

The new runway is 3400 meters in length & 60 meters in width. It will help to double the capacity of the airport, with flight capacity per hour increasing from 8 to 21, the annual passenger traffic increasing from 4.3 million to 8.57 million, and the cargo throughput increasing from 65,000 tons to 121,000 tons.

H.E. Ambassador Wang Lixin stressed the commencement of new runway operations of VIA took place at the right time, which would be an important tribute to the 50th anniversary of China-Maldives diplomatic ties and the 50th anniversary of Maldives tourism industry as well, hoping it would bring more & more tangible benefits to the Maldivian people.