The Hindu Business Line : More airlines may operate to Thiruvananthapuram

To keep pace with growth in passenger and aircraft traffic, facilities at the airport have also been expanded. Airport registers growth in passenger, aircraft traffic

Thiruvananthapuram May 29 Even as the volume of aircraft and passenger traffic at the Thiruvananthapuram international airport is growing, more airlines have shown an interest in operating to the city.

On the international sector, the Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways is commencing operations to the city from Wednesday and the Sri Lanka-based Mihin Air has also shown some interest in operating to the city, said Mr K. Natarajan, Director, Thiruvananthapuram Airport.

Passenger Traffic

Domestic airline GoAir has also expressed an interest in starting flights to Thiruvananthapuram, he said.

Similarly, Kingfisher Airlines had also expressed an interest in starting services on the Thiruvananthapuram-Chennai sector, he added.

According to figures published by the Airports Authority of India, in February this year aircraft movements at the Thiruvananthapuram airport were 51.76 per cent higher than in February 2006. Similarly, international passenger traffic through the airport in February this year was 20 per cent higher than the same period last year, while domestic passenger traffic was 60 per cent higher than in February 2006.

More facilities

To keep pace with this growth in passenger and aircraft traffic, the facilities available at the airport have also been expanded.

A few weeks ago, additional space for baggage scanning machines was created on the city-side of the domestic terminal and two baggage-scanning machines are now available, Mr Natarajan pointed out.

Similarly, the domestic terminal's security hold area had been expanded and more seating for passengers had been provided, he added.

Construction work on two aerobridges in the present international terminal is in progress and likely to be completed by September, he said.

Work on two parking bays for aircraft is progressing quickly, and once this is completed the airport will have 11 parking bays, he added.

Total Revenues

The airport's revenues have also grown over the past few years, and in the last fiscal it earned total revenues of approximately Rs 40 crore and was now profitable, Mr Natarajan said.

Meanwhile, work on the new international terminal of the Thiruvananthapuram airport has commenced. The first phase of this project is scheduled to be completed by September next year and work on the second phase of the project by the end of 2010.