Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport is finalising the existing phase of its expansion, with the opening of its overhauled runway and new duty free shop in the coming weeks, as well as the installation of passport eGates for automated border control. It comes as operator VINCI secured an additional year and a half on its 25-year concession of the airport, as part of force majeure compensation resulting from operations which were severely impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. Similarly, as previously reported, the Macedonian government extended TAV’s concession of its airports by two years, while the Croatian government wrote off over fourteen million euros in concession fees for Zagreb Airport’s operator.
The 3.400-metre runway, built in 1962, has been completely overhauled and layered with high-resistance concrete, specially developed for the project, to improve its weight-bearing capacity. It features a new drainage and LED lighting system, as well as a new system of taxiways, including four rapid exit taxiways (RETs), which will enable aircraft to turn off at higher speeds than regular exit taxiways thereby minimising runway occupancy times.
The Serbian government recently acquired new passport eGates which will be installed in June. “Passengers will no longer have to wait at the passport control booths and will be able to pass through the eGate where they only have to scan their passport and face and pass automatically, which is four times faster than usual. The eGates will arrive by June and will be in use for peak season”, the Serbian Minister for Construction, Transport and Infrastructure, Goran Vesić, said last week.
