Arriving at the end of his four-day working visit to Kisangani, in Tshopo province, President Felix Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo inaugurated the newly renovated passenger terminal and aeronautical runways of Kisangani/Bangoka International Airport, located 17 kilometers from the city center, on Saturday.
With funding from the national government and financial support from the African Development Bank (AfDB), extensive civil engineering work was carried out on the airport’s runway and tarmac to enhance the safety conditions of air operations at the airport.
After cutting the ceremonial ribbon, the President toured the completely transformed passenger terminal, which now meets international aviation security and safety standards.
The Head of State was impressed to see the entire passenger management process for departures and arrivals equipped with essential facilities, including security gates and metal detectors. Thanks to its new infrastructure, the terminal can now handle a flow of up to 300 passengers.
Bangoka’s runway, measuring 3,500 meters in length, has been stripped and resurfaced with a new layer of asphalt, and its width increased to accommodate large aircraft such as the Boeing 767 and Airbus A330.
The airport’s tarmac has been expanded to simultaneously accommodate 10 aircraft, including six large carriers and four smaller planes. Bangoka Airport is now fully equipped with navigational aids and daytime and nighttime runway lighting systems.
According to Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport and Communications Jean-Pierre Bemba, the inauguration of Bangoka is a result of the President’s commitment to providing the DRC with airport infrastructure that meets international standards.
In this context, he announced the upcoming renovation of Kavumu Airport by the end of the year, the start of work on N’djili International Airport in the first quarter of 2025, and the acceleration of ongoing projects at several other airports.
“Today, we are not only celebrating the renovation of Bangoka Airport, but President Felix Tshisekedi has laid the cornerstone for the renewal of this province,” he said.
For his part, Leonard Ngoma Mbaki, Director General of the RVA (Congolese Airports Authority), expressed gratitude to the President for his vision of equipping the DRC with modern airport infrastructure through priority air safety projects (PPSI).
As a designated international relief airport, Bangoka is set to operate 24/7. In addition to power supplied by SNEL (the National Electricity Company), the RVA has two large generators of 540 KVA each to ensure constant power supply.
Additional equipment will be installed in the coming days, and passenger Cobus shuttles are currently in the process of being cleared through customs.
