The opening of Berlin’s troubled new airport is to be postponed to spring 2018, marking the project’s latest delay, according to Germany’s Die Zeit. The Berlin Brandenburg Willy Brandt Airport was originally set to open in 2011 but cost overruns and construction errors caused repeated delays. Latest estimates have been for a late 2017 opening, but an airport spokesperson said an announcement would be made in January on the exact date. Lufthansa had described a winter 2017 start-up date for the terminal as “unsuitable,” instead suggesting that 2018 is more realistic. The project plan is for a E5.4b new terminal in the southeast of the city to operate alongside the city’s Schönefeld Airport. The Tegel airport in the northwest of the German capital would close. <br/>
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The Airline Operators of Nigeria, AON, Wednesday decried the deplorable state of navigational aids at airports around the country . The chairman of AON, Nogie Meggisson, said the situation had made flying in the Nigerian airspace difficult during the harmattan [dry, dusty seasonal winds], thereby leading to flight cancellations. According to him, this has increased the sufferings of passengers and disrupted their plans for the festive season. Meggisson said: “Most international and local flights had to be diverted to Cotonou yesterday, which is rather unfortunate. If the world has been landing in zero or virtually no visibility since 1968…and today 48 years later, Nigeria still can’t land with 800 metres of visibility?" <br/>
The fast and furious growth in Thailand's air passenger traffic seen last year has come to an apparent end. Newly released figures from Airports of Thailand confirm a slower pace at Suvarnabhumi and 5 other big airports as overheating demand cools down. Cumulative volume of passengers boarding, alighting and transiting in the first 11 months of 2016 rose by 11% year-on-year, half the pace of 22.5% achieved in the same period of 2015. Combined passenger volume in the Jan-Nov 2016 period remained overwhelming with 110.4m, compared with a tally of 99.46m in the year-earlier period. Aircraft movements showed slower growth in line with passenger volume, rising 8.7% in the 11-month period to 718,525 versus 17.3% growth with 661,135 movements a year earlier. <br/>