Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh inspected progress at a project expanding Dien Bien Phu Airport in northern Dien Bien province on April 8.

The project received approval from the Prime Minister in 2021 to ensure national defense and security and promote socio-economic development in Dien Bien province and the northwestern region.

The expanded airport is designed to accommodate modern aircraft such as Airbus A320s and A321s and serve between 500,000 and 1 million passengers a year.

Total investment is over VND1.46 trillion ($61.3 million). Work began in January last year and is scheduled for completion in December this year.

Prime Minster Chinh asked contractors to stay on schedule and to even complete the project a month early.

On the same day, the government leader also inspected construction of other key projects in Dien Bien.