Tunisia: Turkish Group to Take Over Management of Monastir Airport in 2008

Kris · #1 (**permalink**) 29-01-08

Tunisia Online (Tunis)

27 June 2007
Posted to the web 28 June 2007

Tunis

TAV, a Turkish group specialized in airport management, will take over the management of Monastir airport by 2008.

The airport which is in use since 1968 is connected to more than 200 airports in the world and has a capacity of 3, 5 million passengers a year. Its revenues are estimated at 50 million Euros per year.

The same operator which won a recent bid to take over the Enfidha airport, will start construction work on the project end of 2007.

The Enfidha airport which will be operational in 2009, is expected to have an initial capacity of some 5, 5 million passengers, and should gradually supersede Tunis Carthage airport, to become Tunisia 's largest airport.

Enfidha, which is located between Hammamet and Sousse , will also witness a major overhaul of its infrastructural capacity with the digging of a deep water harbour, as well as the modernization of its roadwork.

http://allafrica.com/stories/200706280853.html

More...

ROULLA · #2 (**permalink**) 29-01-08

Hi Kris,

Hope that you ,your wife and daughter are all in good health ! Hope that you have all settled in nicely as well.

Kris i must admit i am quite shocked the fact that the Turkish group will be managing Monastir airport, does this mean that the people who will work there speak Tunisian or will things get more complicated.......I actualy think on a personal opinion that it will be a disaster, i mean why can't the people in Tunisia manage their own airport why do they have to bring others to manage, i'm sure that they were doing fine so whats the problem , funny thing is that i have never seen any Turkish tourist in Tunisia before........Do you really think that Tunisia have made a wise decision, perhaps not as far as i'm concerned........have they thought every aspect of the whole situation out............

Sousseannika · #3 (**permalink**) 29-01-08

Quote:

Originally Posted by ROULLA

Hi Kris,

Hope that you ,your wife and daughter are all in good health ! Hope that you have all settled in nicely as well.

Kris i must admit i am quite shocked the fact that the Turkish group will be managing Monastir airport, does this mean that the people who will work there speak Tunisian or will things get more complicated.......I actualy think on a personal opinion that it will be a disaster, i mean why can't the people in Tunisia manage their own airport why do they have to bring others to manage, i'm sure that they were doing fine so whats the problem , funny thing is that i have never seen any Turkish tourist in Tunisia before........Do you really think that Tunisia have made a wise decision, perhaps not as far as i'm concerned........have they thought every aspect of the whole situation out............

I´m not Kris..sorry for answer and sorry for my swinglish but I would like to add some facts. First, this is not quiet news, it´s been planned for a long while. 2. Neighter news that a foreign group managing an airport in another country. Business are business also for Tunisia. 3. TAV has advertised in the tunisian press offering jobs to anybody, I mean those who meet the enquieries of employmentskills such as technical/flightcrew and 3-speaking languages arabic/french/english. It actually means that flightstaff such as capten and his crew can be from - Sweden (smile..).or tunsians as also can supply for ordinary servicejobs on the ground 4. Every airport and flightbusiness in the world are under strict internationally regulations regarding security, trafficroules etc. So why worry and why diaster?
Off topic - I have meet turkish tourists in Sousse, but that has nothing to do with who is managing the airport or not.

ROULLA · #4 (**permalink**) 29-01-08

Hi Sousseannika,

Hope that you are in good health !
Yes i understand what you are saying its just i was thinking more on the security side of things....................Quite concerned about that................take care

jools · #5 (**permalink**) 29-01-08

Hi Roulla,

I agree, I also wonder why the Tunisians cannot manage their own airport as opposed to a Turkish management, especially as they have been managing it for many years & it would appear quite successfully.
It does seem quite a strange proposal, whether this company specialises in this field or not.
However, I would like to think that such dramatic decisions would not have been made lightly & I am sure there will many valid reasons for the justification of such a decision & it must surely be to the good of Tunisians & their tourist industry, why else would they entertain such an idea. Like you, I do hope the language does not become more of an issue than it already is, because at the moment it still can be quite challenging!!!

ROULLA · #6 (**permalink**) 29-01-08

Hi Jools,

hope that you are in good health !
Re, the language issue,
Challenging is an understatement would you not agree..........

Sousseannika · #7 (**permalink**) 29-01-08

Quote:

Originally Posted by jools

Hi Roulla,

I agree, I also wonder why the Tunisians cannot manage their own airport as opposed to a Turkish management, especially as they have been managing it for many years & it would appear quite successfully.
It does seem quite a strange proposal, whether this company specialises in this field or not.
However, I would like to think that such dramatic decisions would not have been made lightly & I am sure there will many valid reasons for the justification of such a decision & it must surely be to the good of Tunisians & their tourist industry, why else would they entertain such an idea. Like you, I do hope the language does not become more of an issue than it already is, because at the moment it still can be quite challenging!!!

Hi Jols,..the TAV is specialists in managing airports, and in this case they were one of seven bidders on this contract, and in finally stage winning over a German/Canadian consortium.

ROULLA · #8 (**permalink**) 29-01-08

Hi Sousseannika,

I noticed that you said that they were infact 1 out of 7 bidders so we are obviously talking money and money talks........if they were the highest bidders then what did you expect, all im saying is that personally i dont approve but that is my personal opinion and every one is entitled to have there say ,would you not agree.............no disrespect

Sousseannika · #9 (**permalink**) 29-01-08

Quote:

Originally Posted by ROULLA

Hi Sousseannika,

Hope that you are in good health !
Yes i understand what you are saying its just i was thinking more on the security side of things....................Quite concerned about that................take care

Hi Roulla and ok security but in what kind of aspect -terrorism or do you mean fysical secutrity...landing/take-off? And/or do you mean Turkeys connections with for example Israel? There have been such discussions in other countries before when TAV hav won other bids.

jools · #10 (**permalink**) 29-01-08

Hi Roulla & Sousseannika,

I am very glad to hear that I am not the only one that finds the language barrier difficult, infact last year at the airport our taxi driver spoke very little English & he kept asking me to slow down & speak proper English!! I am British & thought I spoke good or even audible English but apparently not - so where do you go from there!!!

I wasn't aware that there was so many tenders for the managing of Monastir airport - it is interesting to know that the Germans/Canadians were also very interested.

take care,
jools