New runway at Cairo airport

Cairo airport expansion comes amid continued decline for Egyptian tourism.

Cairo airport has unveiled a new runway as the airport's Terminal 2 nears completion under a EGP 3.4 billion expansion project.

Airport authorities say that the L05 runway, which is 3,000m long and 60m wide, is equipped to the highest specifications and is designed to handle large aircraft.

Terminal 2 is due to open on a trial basis in April and, once operational, is expected to increase the airport's capacity by 7.5 million passengers, to more than 30 million a year.

However the airport's expansion comes at a time when holidaygoers continue to abandon sun destinations such as Egypt, Tunisia and Turkey – amid safety fears – in favour of Spain.

Egypt’s once booming tourism sector has been in decline since the 2011 revolution which led to the overthrow of former president Hosni Mubarak. The country's tourism industry suffered a further setback after the bombing of a Russian passenger plane in the Sinai pensinula last October, killing all 224 people aboard.