In addition to Air India Express (AIE) which will start services from the Kannur international airport with the inaugural flight to Abu Dhabi on December 9, more airline companies are expected to start their services to and from the airport in January.
Announcing this at a press conference here on Thursday, Kannur International Airport Ltd. (KIAL) Managing Director V. Thulasidas said that GoAir, Indigo and SpiceJet were awaiting the final clearance from the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
If clearance was obtained, GoAir was set to operate its first flight on December 9 itself, while Indigo would start its services by mid-January 2019. Foreign airlines had submitted proposals to start services connecting Kannur. KIAL and the State government were making their best efforts to ensure that the foreign airlines get the permission. There would be 10 to 13 flights from Kannur soon, he said.
GoAir would operate flights to Abu Dhabi, Dammam, Muscat and would soon add Doha and Kuwait to its route. AIE would add Muscat to its route as per availability of the aircraft which was undergoing repair.
GoAir would also operate in domestic routes such as Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad and Mumbai. Indigo would have services to Bengaluru, Chennai, Goa, Hyderabad, Hubli and Thiruvananthapuram. These airlines would release details of their schedule as soon as they get clearance from the DGCA, he said.
Cargo complex
Mr. Thulasidas said construction of the proposed cargo complex was expected to be completed in one-and-a-half years.
“Services operated by foreign airlines using big planes capable of carrying heavy load is essential for the cargo business to flourish,'' he said. The airport company would tap maximum income from non-aviation sources, he added.
UDAN project
Services under UDAN project, which were not profitable for the airport, would be operated from Kannur with certain changes in the conditions.
There were 24 check-in counters at the airport, the MD said. This could be increased up to 48 as per the requirement.
KIAL executive director (Engineering) K.P. Jose, chief security officer M.V. Velayudhan, Central Industrial Security Force commandant Daniel Dhanaraj were among those present at the press conference.
