Cambodia re-opens seaside airport in bid to boost tourism

Phnom Penh - Cambodia Monday re-opened its long-dormant airport near the seaside resort of Sihanoukville in a bid to spur tourism on the country's coast, officials said.

The airport, some 230 kilometres (140 miles) southwest of the capital Phnom Penh, will initially only service domestic flights, but officials said they hoped to add international routes by late 2007.

Thong Khon, secretary of state with the Ministry of Tourism, told AFP that the new airport would give visitors a direct link between the northern tourist hub of Siem Reap, home to the famed Angkor Wat temple complex, and Cambodia's southern beaches.

"The re-opening of the airport is really good for our tourism," he said.

"It will help to attract more tourists to Cambodia because ... tourists can fly from Angkor Wat to the beach," he added.

The airport has been closed since the early 1980s due to financial difficulties, but the Cambodian government has asked a subsidiary of France's biggest construction group, Vinci, to run the airport.

"The airport officially re-opened when a plane from Siem Reap landed," said Norinda Khek, a spokesman for the French firm Societe Concessionnaire des Aeroports (SCA), which also manages airports in the capital and the Angkor temple town.

SCA, which has the rights to operate all three airports until 2040, is expected to invest 200 million US dollars to expand operations at Sihanoukville, including enlarging its runway to handle bigger aircraft.

Norinda said the airport's 1,800-metre runway will be lengthened to 2,200 metres later this year to accommodate planes such as the Boeing 737.

Cambodia is one of the world's poorest countries, with tourism being one of the few rapidly growing industries bringing in much-needed revenue.

Tourist arrivals in Cambodia jumped more than 20 per cent to about 1.7 million in 2006, bringing in 1.4 billion dollars in revenue, government figures show.

Agence France Presse

If and when they do extend it, let's hope that they build it to International specs, unlike Jogjakarta. (sp)