Everything You Need To Know About The Newly Inaugurated Kannur Airport!
Putting an end to a wait of five decades, Kannur Airport was inaugurated on Sunday.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan inaugurated the fourth international airport in the state with Kozhikode, Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi being the other three.
Located within 30 kms of the main town, the airport puts Kannur on the global aviation map. The inaugural flight, Air India ExpressBoeing 737-800 to Abu Dhabi, took off on Sunday with 185 passengers.
Below are some interesting facts about Kerala’s 4th International Airport:
Connectivity
Budget air travel To foreign destinations & connectivity to the northern part of Kerala is now possible thanks to Kannur Airport.
International flights to the UAE, Oman and Qatar will be operated from this airport. For regional connectivity, flights to Hyderabad, Bengaluru and Mumbai will be available.
Air India Express and Go Air have already started operations. Other airlines like SpiceJet will start shortly.
Public-Private Partnership
Spread across 2,330 acres, the new international airport in Kerala is built in the public-private partnership model.
While the Kerala government owns A 32.86 per stake in the airport, another 22.54 percent stake is held by state and central public sector undertakings.
It will surely set a benchmark for the Indian aviation sector for how airport should be built and function.
Cost & Capacity
With a runway length of 3,050 metres and costing close to Rs2,300 crore, the airport will have the capacity to manage around 4.6 million passengers annually.
The airport has a 95,000 square metre integrated terminal building, which is the eighth largest in India.
It is also the second greenfield airport in India after Kochi International Airport.
Traditional Architecture
The walls of Kannur International Airport depict the rich heritage and cultural tradition of Malabar and Kannur.
Murals enrich the look of the airport. Paintings of traditional dance forms like Theyyam, Kathakali and Yakshagana can be seen on the airport’s wall.
Opportunity
Kannur airport will create around 2,000 direct jobs by different airport agencies besides boosting the tourism industry in northern Kerala.