HANOI - VIETNAM'S Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has approved a plan to spend up to US$600 million (S$872 million) upgrading Cam Ranh domestic airport into an international one, the government said on Friday.

Under the plan, the airport, near the tourist resort of Nha Trang, will be expanded to give it a capacity of 5.5 million passengers and 100,000 tonnes of cargo per year, said a report on the government's website.

By 2030 this will rise to 8 million passengers and 200,000 tonnes of cargo, the report said.

Airport officials said the facility currently handles around a million passengers every year.

Cam Ranh international airport will be located on an area of more than 1,600 acres and be used for both civil and military purposes, the Internet report added. -- AFP