The construction work at the new King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah would be completed by the end of next year and the facility will start full operations in mid-2017, said a report.

The testing of all equipment at the new airport would be completed as per schedule in 2016, reported the Arab News, citing a senior civil aviation official.

The upgradation is aimed at helping the airport cope with the increasing number of passengers over the years, Sulaiman Al Hamdan, GACA's director general was quoted as saying.
 
The airports in the kingdom are presently handling about 28 million passengers which is set to rise to 45 million by 2020.
 
Also GACA will be setting up a new building for national carrier Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia) at a cost of SR350 million ($93.2 million) in the support area at the airport.

The new facility is part of a strategic GACA programme that includes fleet development, expansion of its flight network, and installation of the latest information technology.

The building will be ready by mid-2017, the report added.