the government commits to building a new airport to allow direct large-body flights to the metropolis

The site “is exposed to a major geological risk linked to the presence of an underwater volcano whose impacts no one could anticipate,” recalled the Minister of Transport, Patrice Vergriete.

The State is committed to Mayotte. The government will present “at the start of the school year, once all studies are completed” a project for a new airport in Mayotte, the current site being threatened by an underwater volcano, the Minister of Transport committed on Tuesday May 14. “Air service to Mayotte is a major issue and guarantees the territorial continuity of the archipelago”underlined Patrice Vergriete, in response to a question from Mahorese MP Estelle Youssouffa.

Mayotte has been waiting for years for an extension of the runway at Dzaoudzi-Pamandzi airport to allow direct wide-body flights to the metropolis 8,000 kilometers away in all weathers, without a stopover in Nairobi, Kenya. A public debate in 2011 confirmed the merits of the long runway, promised in 2019 by President Emmanuel Macron.

However, the first studies show that the current airport near Daoudzi on Petite-Terre “is exposed to a major geological risk linked to the presence of an underwater volcano whose impacts no one could anticipate”, recalled the minister, who brought together local elected officials last week on the subject. This volcano poses a risk of submersion and tsunami, described Estelle Youssouffa in her question.

The abandonment of the extension of its runway in favor of a new airport in Grande-Terre at Bouyouni opens “unprecedented perspectives by positioning Mayotte as a logistics platform for the Mozambique Canal”, she admitted, wondering about the project’s timeline. That “still requires in-depth studies”replied the minister.

“It is therefore neither a step back nor a renunciation” de on the part of the government, “but a reorientation of the project (…) which we will be able to present together at the start of the school year to the people of Mahor once all the studies have been completed”, continued Patrice Vergriete. The minister gave no indication of the date of the groundbreaking, while the member pointed out that “hurry up” because “the State tells us that the current airport would be unusable from 2035”.