{"id":833107,"date":"2025-08-02T16:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-08-02T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=833107"},"modified":"2025-08-01T17:49:40","modified_gmt":"2025-08-01T15:49:40","slug":"western-capes-millionaire-hotspot-a-step-closer-to-getting-its-own-international-airport","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/lifestyle\/833107\/western-capes-millionaire-hotspot-a-step-closer-to-getting-its-own-international-airport\/","title":{"rendered":"Western Cape’s millionaire hotspot a step closer to getting its own international airport"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A new international airport in the Western Cape is a step closer to becoming reality, as the Cape Winelands Airport project has submitted its Environmental Authorisation (EA) application to the government.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The announcement was made during a recent Chamber Chapter meeting at Groot Phesantekraal Wine Estate in Durbanville. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking at the event, Cape Winelands Airport Managing Director Deon Cloete confirmed that the EA application had been formally submitted earlier this month, with a decision expected later this year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve been working for five years, last week we made the final submission for EA,\u201d Cloete said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He also revealed that a finance team has been appointed to manage investment and loan proposals as the project enters a new phase of development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Located in one of South Africa\u2019s wealthiest regions, the Cape Winelands Airport has attracted attention as a potential hub for international and domestic travel. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the latest Africa Wealth Report, the Cape Winelands is the second-richest region in the Western Cape, home to 3,600 dollar millionaires and 16 centi-millionaires.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Cape Winelands include individuals with more than $100 million (about R1.8 billion) in investable assets. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The region includes five key municipalities, Stellenbosch, Drakenstein, Witzenberg, Breede Valley, and Langeberg, with major towns such as Franschhoek, Stellenbosch, Paarl, Ceres, Worcester, and Robertson forming the economic and residential core.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Initially established in 1943 as Fisantekraal Airfield by the South African Air Force, the airport has served the General Aviation community and remains one of the oldest airfields in the region. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was privatised in 1993 and acquired by private investors in November 2020. Now, it is under the ownership and operation of RSA.Aero, the site is poised for an R8 billion transformation into Cape Town\u2019s second international airport.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cape Winelands Airport is situated in the Northern District of Durbanville, offering direct access to one of the fastest-growing and wealthiest areas in the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Commission date set <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Plans for the airport include extending and realigning the main runway to 3,500 metres to accommodate larger aircraft. The facility currently has four runways, two of which are inactive, and the others measure 700 and 900 metres in length.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The development includes the construction of a state-of-the-art terminal designed to handle 5.2 million passengers per year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

By 2050, the airport is expected to process 2 million international tourists and 3 million domestic travellers annually, potentially doubling the total number of passengers passing through the region from 10 million to 20 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to its aviation infrastructure, the airport will feature a range of amenities designed to enhance the traveller experience and reflect the local culture. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The site will include landscaped vineyards, a plaza, a hotel, a conference centre, and a dedicated wine-tasting venue. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

An outdoor amphitheatre with capacity for 5,000 people is also planned, alongside ample parking in a park-like setting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the developers, the airport aims to become a key gateway to the Cape Winelands region, providing improved access to domestic and international routes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe airport will effectively process two million international tourists and three million domestic travellers per annum by 2050,\u201d the developers said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBeyond job creation, the airport is expected to have a far-reaching impact on the regional economy. Increased tourism and business opportunities will contribute to the growth of local businesses and industries.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They also stressed that international airports worldwide have been shown to positively influence the socio-economic conditions of the areas they serve, and expect similar outcomes in the Cape Winelands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Construction on the expanded airport is expected to begin later this year, pending final approvals. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf all our applications are approved, we will begin transforming the airport by realigning the runway, adding new airside infrastructure, and constructing a boutique terminal,\u201d the airport said in an update to BusinessTech in March.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If completed on schedule, the airport could be commissioned by early 2028, marking a significant development for both Cape Town and the broader Western Cape. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A new international airport in the Western Cape is a step closer to becoming reality. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":92,"featured_media":833108,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9876],"tags":[20461,853],"class_list":["post-833107","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lifestyle","tag-cape-winelands-airport","tag-south-africa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/833107","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/92"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=833107"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/833107\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":833110,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/833107\/revisions\/833110"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/833108"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=833107"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=833107"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=833107"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}