Uganda Plans Gargantuan New Airport With VIP Runway, Horrible Logic

There are a lot of optimistic airport projects out there, with very questionable logic. However, this might be the most baseless airport proposal I’ve ever heard of. Goodness gracious, I really hope they don’t light money on fire in this way (thanks to Sean M. for flagging this)…

Uganda unveils optimistic mega-airport concept

There’s a new proposal for the development of a new mega airport in Nyakisharara, Uganda, named Mbarara International Airport. According to the proposal, construction could start soon, and the airport could be completed by 2030.

This wouldn’t just be a modern airport, but it would be one of the biggest in the world, even bigger than Ethiopia’s new mega-airport, which ultimately supports the continent’s biggest airline. So the airport would be able to accommodate north of one hundred million passengers per year, and the airport premises would take up 21 square kilometers.

Per the proposal, the airport would feature two 5,500-meter runways, the longest commercial runways in the world. Not only that, the airport would have a 3,700-meter VIP runway, because… well… I dunno, it makes no sense, you tell me.

So, what’s the argument in favor of this airport? After all, Uganda has a small national airline that loses a bunch of money, so why would you suddenly build a mega airport? The argument is that demand between Brazil and China is increasing, and Uganda would be a logical refueling stop for flights between the countries given that it’s essentially right on the way, greatly reducing travel time between the regions.

Interestingly, private firm Base Seven Company is behind this concept, and Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has directed Ugandan Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja to support and fast track this proposal. Per the letter:

I am writing to direct you and all the concerned Government departments, to help a Company known as ‘Base Seven Company’ to implement a mega transport project at and around the Government Aerodrome of Nyakyisharara, near Mbarara.

Why such a big airport at the hitherto remote area of Uganda? It is all on account of the hitherto unknown factor of the way the Globe was arranged by God and the new phenomenon of the unfolding global affluence.

Two parts of the Globe are very crucial in connection with this issue. These are: Latin America, especially Brazil, and China. These two zones of the Globe are now trading and communicating with one another. However, their route of communication is wholly irrational and uneconomic. Yet, if somebody were to come from Brazil, refuel at Nyakyisharara, it would take him 20 hours of flying time.

The Company will use their own money to do the developments and recover that money by charging the users of the Airport and the accompanying facilities, such as the hotels they will build there.

I love the “it is all on account of the hitherto unknown factor of the way the Globe was arranged by God and the new phenomenon of the unfolding global affluence” comment, oh my.

Below you can see a video about the proposal. By the way, I love the planes featured in the video, especially a little before the one minute mark. Are those… China Southern Boeing 727s, or Tupolev Tu-154s, or…? I also like the cameo of the imaginary Air China Airbus A380!

Nothing about this concept makes any sense

I’m not trying to be a jerk, but this truly seems like the worst airport concept we’ve ever seen.

Okay, let’s go with the premise that there’s increasing demand between China and Brazil. That’s absolutely true, and there’s no denying that Uganda has good geography for the purposes of a refueling stop. But even if that’s the case, it doesn’t make the concept any more logical.

The most obvious issue is that Addis Ababa has equally good geography with a strong, dominant airline, and we’re seeing a mega airport built there as well. So what competitive advantage does Uganda offer, over Ethiopia’s more well established operation?

Next, the scale of this just seems completely off. Okay, let’s assume we live in a fantasy world where this all works out. How many daily flights does the airport really expect to see between China and Brazil? The renderings show literally dozens and dozens of planes belonging to Chinese airlines on the ground, parked at gates. That kind of volume makes no sense.

For that matter, I feel like the people behind this project are kind of missing the point. If the idea is just that Uganda is a refueling stop, it doesn’t matter how nice the terminal is, or how many gates you have. Refueling stops typically just consist of passengers staying onboard as the plane is refueled, often parked over in a remote part of the field.

Uganda just being used as a refueling stop also limits the upside in terms of the economics, since it’s not like this will necessarily hugely develop the country’s economy. If a vast majority of passengers are simply transiting and staying onboard the aircraft, the upside is much limited than a new airport that greatly grows local passenger numbers.

What’s so bizarre to me here is that there are reportedly private investors behind this concept, and the country claims it won’t have to directly pay for this. I’d be fascinated to see the money trail for this project.

Uganda doesn’t exactly have a good track record with aviation. National airline Uganda Airlines (where both long haul planes are currently grounded) might just have the worst margins in the industry, as the carrier’s losses last year amounted to roughly 50% of total revenue. Talk about some subsidized airline tickets!

And not to keep ranting, but a VIP runway? Say what? That’s stranger than when the founder of imaginary airline Global Ghana Airlines claimed the launch would be delayed because they accidentally hired low altitude flight attendants instead of high altitude flight attendants.

Bottom line

Uganda wants to build a huge new airport, with the goal of capitalizing on travel demand between China and Brazil. Okay, Uganda has good geography for those purposes, but despite that, nothing about this concept makes sense. What are all the gates for? What’s the point of a VIP runway? What’s the competitive advantage over Ethiopia?

What do you make of this Uganda airport concept?