Both consortia pre-qualified for the tender in April 2006 however, the tender was awarded to the Illembe consortium, with the Indiza consortium not being considered for failing to meet certain tender requirements.
The project was then hit by a tender war between the Illembe consortium (led by Group Five and Wilson Bayly Holmes-Ovcon) and the Indiza consortium (led by Grinaker-LTA). However, disputes between Airports Company South Africa (ACSA) and the Dube Tradeport firm (which is backed by the KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) provincial government) stalled the project until national transport minister Jeff Radebe intervened to jump-start the project in 2004.
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It was also found that it would be 95% more expensive to operate Durban International Airport to its full potential and only then develop KSIA, than it would be to develop KSIA immediately. Upgrading Durban International Airport was considered but a study published in 2007 found that the existing airport would still have serious constraints and would reach its maximum potential by 2025, after which there would be no choice but to develop KSIA. The airport's 2,400 m (7,874 ft) runway was too short to allow large aircraft such as the Boeing 747 to operate intercontinental routes out of Durban, and the resulting decrease in international air traffic caused Durban to become marginalised with respect to Johannesburg and Cape Town. The project was revived in the late 1990s when the limitations of Durban International Airport became apparent.
However, the project was halted in 1982 due to the economic slowdown at the time. By 1975, earthworks and a storm drainage system had been completed. King Shaka International Airport was first conceptualised in the 1970s, with construction beginning in 1973.
The passenger terminal under construction on 28 August 2009, taken from the air side and showing the domestic airbridges The aircraft also returned for further pilot training between 29 August and 1 September the same year. The aircraft was being used for training and operated many flights in and out of the airport until 4 February 2014. On 27 January 2014 an Airbus A380-800 of British Airways landed at KSIA becoming the first A380 to do so. In September 2015, during the World Routes Conference which was held in Durban (the first time on African soil), Turkish Airlines announced a new international service to Istanbul and Qatar Airways announced the commencement of service to Doha in December of that year. The largest aircraft KSIA currently has scheduled services for is the Boeing 777-300ER, with Emirates operating Dubai–Durban, although KSIA's runway length and terminal are designed to handle the world's largest passenger aircraft, the Airbus A380 and smaller Boeing 747. The airport forms part of the Dube TradePort, which will additionally consist of a trade zone linked to the airport's cargo terminal, facilities to support the airport such as nearby offices and transit accommodation for tourists, an integrated agricultural export zone, and an IT platform.
Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg, and KSIA itself with 7 passenger and 2 cargo airlines offering domestic air services. The airport was designed by Osmond Lange Architects and Planners and cost R6,800,000,000 (about US$900 million ).Īlthough the larger airport was built to grow the area's international services, it is also a key airport for domestic services throughout South Africa, serving the "Golden Triangle" between Cape Town International Airport, O. It replaced Durban International Airport ( ICAO: FADN) and uses the same IATA airport code. Located in La Mercy, KwaZulu-Natal, approximately 35 km (22 mi) north of the city centre of Durban, it opened its doors to passengers on, just over a month before the start of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. King Shaka International Airport ( IATA: DUR, ICAO: FALE), abbreviated KSIA, is the primary international airport serving Durban, South Africa.