After a lengthy closure, Attapeu International Airport has now been handed over to the Lao People’s Liberation Air Force.
A handover ceremony between the Civil Aviation Authority, under the Ministry of Public Works and Transport, and the Lao Air Force, under the Ministry of Public Security, was held on Saturday.
Attapeu International Airport was officially shut down in 2017 after Lao Airlines Vientiane to Attapeu flights were canceled in October 2016.
Passenger numbers were low, and flights were infrequent, with only 139,600 people living in Attapeu Province.
Authorities of Attapeu Province revealed in 2017 that Lao Airlines had decided to stop offering flights from Vientiane to Attapeu from October 2016.
The main economic activities of Attapeu Province are power production, mining, and industrial plantations, while few tourists visit the province.
The Attapeu International Airport was constructed by Vietnamese Hoang Anh Gia Lai Group (HAGL Group), with the construction project launched on 10 May 2013
The airport opened in 2015 after a total construction value of over LAK 289 billion, or approximately USD $36.9 million.
