New air traffic control tower inaugurated

TIRANA, May 3 – The National Air Traffic Agency (NATA) and its control tower have been reconstructed under a euro 12.5 million government investment in an effort to increase the agency’s infrastructural and human capacities. Speaking at the inauguration ceremony Transport Minister Sokol Olldashi said “the facility we are inaugurating is only the visible part of a bigger and more dynamic project with the prestigious American company Lockheed Martin, worth 60 million dollars.”
During a recent visit to the agency’s facilities at the Tirana International Airport, Transport Minister Sokol Olldashi said the NATA investment under “the modernization of Albanian air space” project will give the agency the necessary working conditions considering the fast growth of air transport.
“The number of passengers has doubled since 2005. We found it at 730,000 and now the number is 1.4 million,” said Olldashi, referring to the annual number of passengers traveling through the airport during the past 5 years.
The reconstruction of facilities is expected to make the agency handle double its current capacity.
According to the Transport Ministry, the number of take-offs and landings in the country’s only airport has doubled since 2005. The number of transit flights has also increased by 40 percent.
Petrit Sulaj, the agency’s director, said the modern air traffic control tower meets international security standards, considering it as one of the best in the Balkans.
Since April 2005, the airport has been managed by TIA, a consortium owned by HOCHTIEF AirPort GmbH (HTA), one of the leading private airport investors in the world, which won a 20-year concession to be in charge of the airport’s activities.
Official figures show that in 2010, Tirana International Airport (TIA) served 1,5 million passengers, recording further impressive growth for the company. The Airport also recorded 20,768 air traffic movements (ATMs) and handled 1,785 tons of cargo. In comparison with the previous year, passenger numbers increased by 10.2 per cent, ATMs by 3.5 per cent and cargo by 4.4 per cent.
With last December’s liberalization of visas for Albanians still more passengers are expected to use the Airport. In order to maintain its consistent high standards and high levels of customer satisfaction, TIA will be working hard to provide its top level of efficiency to cope with the expected growth in numbers, offering all passengers the full safety and security that they deserve.