The Visakhapatnam International Airport, which was devastated by cyclone Hudhud on October 12, is back on the road to recovery. Though the there was a drop in passenger traffic at the airport by around 30,000 in the first month after the cyclone, it is fast picking up and is estimated to reach the pre-cyclone average of around 1 lakh passengers a month very soon.
It is also expected to go up further with a few more airline operators expected to launch flights in the next few months.
“Air Asia has sought slots for operation of two flights from Vizag to Bangalore. They are expected to begin operations on December 15. Air India has asked us for the schedule to operate the Delhi – Port Blair flight via Vizag,” Airport Director C. Pattabhi told The Hindu.
“The third aerobridge is also ready for operation. The aerobridges can be operated only after the roofing work is completed. The roofing material is expected to arrive by November 30 after which it could take about one and a half months for complete restoration of the facilities at the new terminal building,” Mr. Pattabhi said.
Silk Air, which operates a direct flight from Vizag to Singapore thrice a week, has resumed operations from November 16. Malindo is planning to operate direct flights thrice a week from Vizag to Malaysia from February 15, 2015. Though the airline operator has not made any formal announcement, passengers can log on the airline website to book their tickets. There is demand for an additional flight to Chennai in view of the high demand and flights to Ahmedabad and Goa.
The airport was made operational in less than a week after the cyclone blew away the roof and caused extensive damage to the new terminal building. The Air India flight from Dubai to Vizag via Hyderabad was the first to arrive here after the airport was made operational on October 17.
Union Minister of Civil Aviation P. Ashok Gajapathi Raju is said to be keen on total restoration of the airport by Sankranthi.
