The hugely anticipated “Lanseria airport” of Cape Town is well on its way to opening its doors.
In 2021, IOL reported that the airport funded by South African billionaire, Rob Hersov would be named the Cape Winelands Airport, and like Johannesburg’s Lanseria airport, would serve as a similar establishment.
According to Cape Winelands Airport director, Mark Wilkinson, the development plans for the Cape Winelands Airport are progressing at an exciting rate, by an incredible team of professionals.
“Which include an expansion of one of the existing runways and other aeronautical facilities and infrastructure, providing much needed aviation capacity and redundancy into the region, also reducing the overall cost of flying for the public.
“Airports are known to have a large catalytic multiplier effect and act as economic engines by stimulating growth, trade, investment, economic activity and most importantly job creation, and Cape Winelands Airport will be no different,” he said.
Wilkinson said that the plans are extensive and very near conclusion, and was tight lipped about the finer details of the airport.
“We look forward to sharing them in the future. For now, we are operating as a small general aviation airfield offering training and charter flights in the most beautiful part of the world, and a location very drivable for residents of Cape Town and the Winelands, which we see as a future growth node for the region,” he said.
DA spokesperson on tourism, Manny de Freitas, said the Cape Winelands Airport, formerly known as the Fisantekraal Airfield, is 15km outside of Durbanville.
“The airfield has four concrete runways, which date from around 1943, built for the use of the air force during the Second World War. A group of investors purchased the airport in the 1990s, they want to eventually establish the Cape Winelands Airport as a full-service hub that caters for both scheduled passenger flights as well as general aviation activities, including non-scheduled flights by private plane owners,” he said.
De Freitas said the airport’s appeal will be its proximity to the Cape Winelands and Franschhoek.
This will have a positive impact on tourism, not only internationally but locally too. The fact that this airport is located in the north of the city (a distance from the existing airport) will add more tourism opportunities from the opportunities currently in place. It’s additional exciting because this is a private venture where the economy will benefit whilst not having to spend from the national or provincial budgets,” he said.
MEC for mobility in the Western Cape, Ricardo Mackenzie revealed on Twitter last month that: “The Cape Winelands Airport which includes plans for inland port, shops, hotel. This billion rand development will create more jobs in the Cape Winelands and aim to remove goods from the road,” he said.