Georgia to close Tbilisi Airport, after launch of major aviation hub in Vaziani

The current Tbilisi International Airport will cease operations after the new airport in Vaziani is put into service, Georgia’s Deputy Minister of Economy Tamar Ioseliani has said.

She said the need to build a new facility is driven by growing passenger traffic and the limited capacity for expanding the existing airport, Caliber.Az reports, citing Georgian media.

“The airport in Vaziani will be commissioned by the end of 2031. Its capacity will be four times greater than that of the current Tbilisi airport, and it will be able to serve up to 20 million passengers,” Ioseliani noted.

The new airport is planned as a modern international hub. The government is considering the sale of part of its shares to investors, although the controlling stake will remain with the state.

At the same time, construction is constrained by an existing agreement with TAV Georgia, the company that operates the airports in Tbilisi and Batumi. The contract runs until 2031 and includes a ban on operating international flights within a 200-kilometer radius of Tbilisi.

By Khagan Isayev