Soon after securing a place on the aviation map with the commissioning of the Kannur international airport, inclusion of the Thiruvananthapuram airport on the list of the six Airports Authority of India (AAI) managed airports to be privatised has puzzled many.
Increasing patronage with the State capital getting better linked to the metro, tourism locales, easy access to West Asia, Sri Lanka, and Maldives, and 14% increase in traffic during 2017-18 from the international airport compared to 2016-17 seem to have turned the tables in favour of the decision.
A private player is being roped in for operating, managing, and developing the profit-making airport for the next 50 years when it was gearing up to achieve the five-million mark in passenger movement.
In January 2019, the airport witnessed 899 international aircraft movements, 373 domestic aircraft movements, and 69 non-scheduled movements.
New Delhi is well connected with red-eye flights going full, but domestic carriers are yet to come up with adequate flights to Kolkata, Hyderabad, Mumbai, and Ahmedabad.
“Movement of tourists, viability, and affordability have resulted in the increase in traffic through Thiruvananthapuram despite the potential of the airport not being tapped fully,” says S. Vijay Bhusan, former Chairman, Airline Operators Committee.
Though the recent floods had resulted in a dip in tourist arrivals, he says tourist attractions such as Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple, beaches, hill stations, and backwaters are bringing tourists. The movement of techies based in Technopark is on the rise with better air connectivity to Bengalaru and Hyderabad and affordable fares, he says.
With the government expanding visa on arrival to 165 countries around the world, Thiruvananthapuram has become a major port of entry. Emirates, which operates from its hub in Dubai, has on an average 70 to 80 flyers seeking visa on arrival.
Intra-State flights sought
President, Kerala Association of Travel Agents, K.V. Muralidharan is of the view that more flights, including those linking Kochi, Kozhikode, and Kannur, will further boost air traffic from the capital.
The user development fee is another hurdle that forces flyers to go to Nedumbassery, he adds.
