The General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) started operating the new airport here Tuesday. Flights were directed to the state-of-the-art facility, which includes new terminals, control tower, and several technical and administrative buildings. The first flight that the airport received came from King Abdul Aziz Airport in Jeddah. The airport was scheduled to start operations on Sunday, but it could not go as planned. Saudi Gazette reported on Sept. 18 that Saudi Arabian Airlines had deferred the transfer of its operations to the new airport in Najran from Sunday until Tuesday because preparations for handling flights there had not been completed. The Najran airport is one of the new generation airports in the Kingdom. The new project, including passenger lounges for arrival and departures, was carried out at a cost of SR400 million. “The airport is designed to receive wide-bodied aircraft and will operate flights to neighboring countries. It has a capacity of 1.4 million passengers and 15,000 flights annually,” said Faisal Al-Sugair, president of the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA). “We have implemented this project as part of GACA's efforts to modernize the Kingdom's aviation infrastructure facilities,” the president said. The new terminal covers an area of 13,000 sq. meters where six planes can park at a time. There are separate passenger lounges for the arrival and departure of domestic and international flights. Three air bridges have been provided for the boarding of passengers. The project included renovation of the air cargo building and the lounge for VIP passengers. A new building has been constructed for support services.
