Civil Aviation starts gazetting Kabalega International Airport
A general view of part of Kabalega International Airport in Bunyoro Sub-region. The airport is being gazetted with ICAO, the international body responsible for air transport. PHOTO/STEPHEN OTAGE
What you need to know:
- Mr Fred Byamukama, the State minister for Works and Transport, said the Civil Aviation Authority has gazetted the airport to be named Kabalega International Airport following a Cabinet resolution to change the name from Kabale Airport.
The airport is expected to start operations in September 2025, with cargo planes delivering heavy equipment for oil production.
The Ministry of Works and Transport says the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has started the process of gazetting the name Kabalega International Airport and the airport itself with the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).
ICAO, the international body responsible for regulating air transport.
Speaking during the site supervision tour last week, Mr Fred Byamukama, the State minister for Works and Transport, said the Civil Aviation Authority has gazetted the airport to be named Kabalega International Airport following a Cabinet resolution to change the name from Kabale Airport.
“I am here to perform my oversight role. It is clear that the progress of the work is 95 percent ready, and the airport has passed all the tests. Government renamed it Kabalega International Airport and CAA has already gazetted the name. CAA is gazetting the Airport with ICAO the international body responsible for air transport,” he said.
Opening for flights
Asked when the airport will start operations, he said they anticipate the airport to start receiving heavy cargo planes, which are delivering heavy equipment for oil production, by September 2025,.
Mr Byamukama also revealed that they are conducting feasibility studies starting with passenger services to support tourism in the Bunyoro area and for passengers who want to connect to Northern Uganda.
The Shs1.18 trillion airport is bigger than Entebbe International Airport and it is close to an industrial park and the oil wells.
Last Thursday, the minister and officials from the Civil Aviation Authority toured the airport whose construction started in 2018 and was supposed to be completed in 2022.
Asked why the contract extended by two years, Mr Byamukama said like all other sectors, the airport was affected by Covid-19 as well as escalation of prices for commodities such as cement, which also increased the cost of the construction works.
According to him, the construction of the hangar, airport terminal, the runways and the firefighting area are already complete. He adds that they are left with bringing in the mobile control tower, water electricity, and heavy-duty generators.
Mr Byamukama also revealed that some staff at the Civil Aviation Authority in Entebbe have already been deployed at the new airport to start initiating the airport handover process from its contractor to government and they will also be training more Ugandans on how to handle airport operations.
