KUWAIT: Minister of Communication and Minister of State for National Assembly Affairs Dr Mohammed Mohsen Al-Busairi said on Thursday that the Central Tenders Committee (CTC) has approved the purchase of a highly sophisticated radar system for Kuwait International Airport. "The new system will greatly enhance the air traffic service at the airport as part of the ambitious development projects," the minister told reporters after an inspection tour of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).

The projects, which fall in the framework of the state development plan, include launching Terminal 2 the construction of which was approved last month; they aim to cope up with the latest developments of the international air traffic control systems.

These projects will help realize the open sky policy adopted by the State of Kuwait as per the instructions of His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah," Al-Busairi said, noting the HH the Prime Minister instructed offering all necessary facilities to the global airlines using the airport.

Dealing with Terminal 2 project, the minister said the passenger terminal, to go operational after five years, would enhance the handling capacity of airport from seven million to 20 million passengers a year.

The other key projects include one to launch a power station to feed the airport at a cost of KD 30 million and the construction of a new building for the engineering department costing KD 12 million which will complete by next February," the minister revealed. He voiced satisfaction with the level of safety and security regulations for all flights.

Al-Busairi praised the air controllers for technical expertise and all staffers of the DGCA for their efforts to upgrade the services at the airport saying: "I'm 200 percent reassured about the safety and security regulations at the airport." The minister took pride in the handling capacity of the airport, noting that the number of fights by commercial airlines to and from the airport topped 100,000 in 2009.

The number of flights crossing Kuwait airspace last year hit 25,000, which testifies to the great responsibility being shouldered by the personnel of civil aviation," he went on to say. Regarding the financial benefits for civil aviation personnel, Al-Busairi affirmed that the Civil Service Council started probing the issue with a view to improve their salaries.

Meanwhile, DGCA's Deputy Director-General for Air Traffic Services Khaled Al-Shaiji said the new air control building of the airport would be at the ready by February 2011. "The building will be provided with the state-of-the-art air traffic control equipment and a meteorological division," Al-Shaiji said, noting that the new radar would go operation three years after the approval of the relevant tender. - Kuwait Times