Cape Town Airport is Getting a R11.3bn Makeover

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12-03-2026
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Airports Company South Africa is set to spend R11.3bn transforming Cape Town International Airport in one of the most significant infrastructure investments in the facility’s history, as record passenger volumes and a looming private competitor apply pressure from two directions.

The programme covers a new runway, expanded domestic and international terminals, additional aircraft stands, and enhanced airfield security, with the first construction tender planned for June and contractor award expected by December.

The centrepiece of the project is a new Code F-compliant runway costing approximately R6.2bn. Rather than continuing to rehabilitate the existing runway, which is nearing the end of its operational life, ACSA has opted to build entirely on greenfield land approximately 210 metres east of the current alignment, reoriented by roughly 11 degrees. The shift will improve air traffic efficiency and unlock space for future terminal expansion, with rapid exit taxiways and a partial parallel taxiway included to reduce runway occupancy time and improve aircraft turnaround efficiency during peak travel periods. Code F classification means the facility will accommodate the largest commercial aircraft in service, including the Airbus A380-800 and Boeing 747-8, as well as next-generation wide-body jets — a signal of ACSA’s expectations for long-haul growth into the Western Cape. Apron construction adds a further R850m to the airfield bill.

The domestic terminal is the second major focus. The existing arrivals facility was not fully replaced during the T2010 remodelling programme that preceded the FIFA World Cup, and has been running at capacity for some time. A new domestic arrivals building and an extension to the departures terminal — together estimated at R2.7bn — will deliver additional baggage reclaim capacity, more passenger loading bridges to reduce bussing during poor weather, expanded lounges, and new retail and food offerings. That programme is the longest-running component of the entire upgrade, with an 85-month construction timeline once contractors are appointed, placing final completion well into the early 2030s.

The international terminal will receive a more targeted R853m intervention, focused on removing operational bottlenecks in arrivals and departures rather than a wholesale rebuild. Enhancements will include additional apron stands, expanded commercial and lounge offerings, and improvements to immigration processing and bussing gates, with a 60-month construction window. A new perimeter fence, priced at R513m, rounds out the security and compliance component of the programme.

The scale of the investment reflects the trajectory of demand. Cape Town International recorded 11.1 million two-way passengers in 2025, a record for the airport, and current projections point to continued growth in both domestic and international travel. The CTIA upgrade will absorb the majority of ACSA’s current R21.7bn capital expenditure programme across its entire national network, which also includes OR Tambo International in Johannesburg, King Shaka in Durban, and airports in the Eastern Cape and George. The City of Cape Town’s MMC for Economic Growth James Vos described the investment as essential to maintaining the city’s competitiveness, pointing to 228 international flights per week during the 2025/26 peak schedule connecting the Western Cape to more than 30 global destinations.

The timing is also shaped by the emergence of a private competitor. The Cape Winelands Airport, situated north of Durbanville on the former Fisantekraal military airfield, is being developed by a private consortium at a cost of R8bn, with construction expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2026 and the facility scheduled to open in 2028. The project has secured environmental approval but still faces a number of appeals from neighbouring landowners, and the noise impact zone at full capacity is projected to overlap with an adjacent residential development. If construction proceeds on schedule, the new runway north of Durbanville will offer airlines a measurable commercial proposition — proximity to the Winelands region — and at least one industry observer has noted that the competition will force Cape Town International to raise its standards. ACSA has drawn a parallel with Gauteng, where OR Tambo and Lanseria have coexisted and, it argues, complemented each other. Whether that model translates to the Western Cape will be tested in earnest before the end of the decade.