April 20 (SeeNews) - Albania inaugurated its second international airport in Kukes, in the northeastern part of the country, with the first passenger flight from Tirana operated by Air Albania, local media reported.
However, airlines will be able to use the airport for scheduled flights as of June 17, news outlet Exit reported, quoting transport minister Belinda Balluku as saying on Sunday. Balluku added that the Kukes airport will offer direct connections to Germany, Switzerland and the U.K., without disclosing which carriers plan to establish connections with the airport.
In March 2019, Albania’s government endorsed the infrastructure ministry's choice of a concessionaire of Kukes airport. A joint venture comprising Albanian-registered companies Global Technical Mechanics and Bami was declared winner in the tender for reconstruction, operation and maintenance of Kukes airport with its offer to invest around 8 million euro ($9.7 million) in the project.
Tirana International Airport Mother Teresa is Albania's only other operational international airport.
($ = 0.8285 euro)