Second terminal reopens at Cairo Airport

Reconstruction comes to an end as Cairo resumes air traffic with Russia.

Cairo International Airport has reopened its second terminal on a trial basis, Egypt's civil aviation ministry has said.

The terminal has been closed for several years for reconstruction.

The upgraded terminal is equipped with the most up-to-date technology and security, and its 3,000-m long runway is designed to handle large aircraft, airport authorities said.

The terminal can handle up to 7.5 million passengers per year, bringing Egypt's total annual passenger capacity to 30 million passengers.

The re-opening of the airport's second terminal comes as Egypt prepares to resume air traffic with Russia, which was suspended after the bombing of a Russian passenger plane in Egypt's Sinai pensinula in October 2015, killing all 224 people aboard.

Cairo will become the first Egyptian airport to resume air traffic with Russia, whose national carrier Aeroflot is set to operate out of the redeveloped terminal.

Egypt’s once booming tourism sector has been in decline since the 2011 revolution, which led to the overthrow of former president Hosni Mubarak.