KOZHIKODE, 11 August 2007 — The infrastructure facilities are in place at the Calicut Airport near here to receive foreign airlines, according to Airport Authority of India (AAI) chairman K. Ramalingam. “It’s now up to the airlines to decide on flying to Calicut,” he told reporters here.
An inline baggage system, the first of its kind in India that will do away with the separate x-raying of baggage, will be installed at the airport by November. The modern imported equipment has been picked up for Calicut Airport, considering the growing security concerns here, he said.
“Several airlines have sought night parking facility at the airport, which has presently 10 barking bays.
Permitting night parking at the airport will improve air connectivity,” he added.
Ramalingam said AAI will provide three aerobridges at the airport which will help passengers directly enter the terminal while alighting from an aircraft.
A 15,000-sq meter international arrival terminal has been opened to passengers, similar to the modern and spacious international departure terminal that became operational on May 14.
Three modern and user-friendly conveyor belts are installed at arrival terminal besides, 800 stainless steel chairs for passengers in the security hold area.
Escalators and elevators are also installed inside and outside the terminal building, the airport director Veeraswamy said.
Facilities for the passengers and visitors like fast food counters, luggage room, jewelry shop, handicraft stall, traffic direction poles, restaurant, and cyber café were also opened at the airport.
Meanwhile, the Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL), India’s first corporate airport company, has decided to take up low-cost airport projects in tier-2 cities.
Around 35 small greenfield airports are slated to come up in India and the company has already held discussions with the Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh governments in this regard, the CIAL managing director Sriram Bharat said.
“We have eight years experience in building and operating an international airport here in record time at a cost of Rs.3 billion. So we could quote the lowest rates for similar projects and we are confident of executing them in the shortest possible time,” he told reporters here.
He said Cochin Duty Free, operated jointly by CIAL and the multinational Alpha Kreol, has maintained 40 percent growth for the third successive year. “We would be able to do away with aircraft landing charges and offer several other concessions to airport users if it succeeded in maintaining its present tempo of operational growth in revenue,” he added.
The company has projected Rs.1.25 billion in revenue for the current financial year against an earning of Rs.1.12 billion earned in the previous fiscal.
