The grand opening ceremony was held at the new US$219 million terminal, which was built with aid from Japan’s Special Yen Credit Loan by KTOM joint venture (Kajima-Taisei-Obayashi-Madea) and Japan Airport Consultants.

With a capacity of 10 million passengers per annum it covers an area of 92,920 square meters with three floors and one mezzanine.

In his address to the ceremony, Southern Airports Authority director general Nguyen Nguyen Hung said the airport authority was aware of the importance and difficulties of running the terminal as it had been trialing since August, and handled more than 27,000 flights with two million passengers.

He said the authority was installed with specialized systems like access control, information and building management, baggage X-ray machines, escalators and moving sidewalks.

The Japan Bank for International Cooperation Chief Representative in Hanoi Mutsuya Mori said there was tough competition between major airports worldwide to attract foreign travelers, investment and air services.

“We expect that the new terminal will expand the passenger handling capacity of Tan Son Nhat International Airport by 2.5 times up to 18 million passengers per year,” Mori said.

Tan Son Nhat International Airport handles over 75 percent of the country’s total international passengers.

The new terminal adjoins an existing terminal which now only serves domestic flights.