Russia's second biggest city will play host to the country's debut summit of the Group of Eight industrialized nations in July and Transportation Minister Igor Levitin, St. Petersburg Governor Valentina Matviyenko and other officials will attend the opening of the second landing strip at Pulkovo airport.
The Russian government allocated 3 billion rubles ($110 million) last year to modernize and widen the runway to receive airliners with a weight of over 300 tons. The runway stretches for four kilometers (about 2.5 miles) and is 70 meters (230 feet) wide. It will also get a Category III certification from the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), which allows the airport to receive planes in severe weather conditions.
The city will have to accept large planes, such as U.S. President George Bush's Air Force One, when the leaders of the club of rich countries arrive on July 15-17. The presidents and prime ministers of Germany, Italy, Canada, France, Japan, the United Kingdom, as well as European Union officials, will also be arriving in St. Petersburg to join President Putin for Russia's debut G8 summit.
