Khanh Hoa province is seeking permission to have a second airport, located in the Van Phong Economic Zone, as part of a special development mechanism granted by the parliament.
Local authorities have proposed to the Ministry of Transport to add Van Phong Airport into the south-central province’s draft planning for the 2021-2030 period, with vision until 2050, and Van Phong Economic Zone’s draft planning until 2040, with vision until 2050, before seeking prime ministrial approval.
Khanh Hoa currently operates Cam Ranh International Airport, about 65 kilometers from Van Phong Economic Zone. The zone is 40 km from the neighboring province of Phu Yen's Tuy Hoa Airport.
Per the draft planning for the 150,000-hectare Van Phong Economic Zone, the proposed airport will cover 500-550 hectares in Van Thang commune, Van Ninh district.
Khanh Hoa, home to the well-known Nha Trang Bay, also plans to build a railway to connect Van Phong Airport to Dam Mon International Seaport, also in Van Ninh district, and the national railway system in Ninh Hoa township.
The province plans to attract billions of U.S. dollars into 27 major projects in Van Phong Economic Zone during the 2023-2024 period. In June, the National Assembly, the country's highest legislative body, issued a resolution on distinct mechanisms and policies for Khanh Hoa to be implemented on a pilot basis to attract only mega projects.
Van Phong Economic Zone has so far attracted 155 projects with a total registered capital of $4.1 billion, including 30 foreign-invested ones, according to its management board. Disbursed investment capital has reached $2.5 billion, with 97 operational projects.
Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) director Dinh Viet Thang said the agency insists on a network of 28 airports in 2021-2030, featuring 22 operational ones and six to-be-built. The airports would serve 283 million passengers a year, while 95% of the population could reach an airport within 100 kilometers. Until 2050, Vietnam is set to operate 14 international airports and 17 domestic ones, or 31 in total.