Coimbatore International Airport, which is used by travellers from the entire western region and also Palakkad, has seen 17 % annual increase in domestic passenger movement. In peak season, the passenger movement is up by even 20 %. Over 15 lakh passengers use the airport every year. On the domestic map, Coimbatore is connected to all the four metropolitan cities, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and also cities such as Ahmedabad , Tirupathi, etc. According to data available, domestic aircraft movement here from April to December last year was 15,131 and international was 761. It was the highest in December. From April to December 2015, it was 13,186 domestic aircraft movement and 727 international flight movement.
In terms of passenger movement, it was 14,50,667 domestic passengers and 1,06,582 international passengers between April and December 2016. The passenger movement (domestic) during the corresponding period the previous year was 11,89,078 and international was 99,307. The airlines are operating to full capacity now. With growth in various sectors, the passenger movement is also increasing. “We need a bigger terminal as the city grows and number of air passengers increases,” say sources at the airport. The present building is 18,000 sq.mt and the new one proposed is 50,000 sq.mt. But, this project can be taken up only after acquiring land for airport expansion. With increasing number of flights, air cargo handling is also on the rise. It is mainly fruits, vegetables, and flowers that go from the region to Singapore and Sharjah in the existing flights. When bigger flights operate from the airport, air cargo movement will shoot up, says an official.