With the inauguration of Kunnur International Airport, Kerala now becomes the first Indian state to possess four international airports on its ground altogether. Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu and chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan, both flagged off the first Air India Express flight, carrying 186 passengers from Kunnur to Abu Dhabi at 10 a.m on Sunday, 9th December 2018.
Kerela would have another feather of first state with 5 international Airports had the Aranmulla International Airport project not got cancelled.So now Kerala overcomes Maharastra which has three t International Airports.
The other three international airports in Kerala are Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi and Kozhikode. The fourth one took shape because of the prolonged public demand for an airport at the malabar region of Kerala. The kunnur International Airport is spreaded over 2,000 acres and is located about 25 km east of the city near the municipality of Mattannur.
Set up on a public-private partnership (PPP) model, the consturction expenses of the airport, as estimated, are about Rs 1,892 crores.The airport is highlighted with an integrated terminal for both domestic and international passengers, six aerobridges, a 3,050 metre long runway with the capacity of handling 2,000 passengers during peak hours.
Good news is that, thousands of NRI Malayalis, working in the Gulf countries are now going to be benefited by this greenfield airport particularly. Apart from, Air India and GoAir other domestic airlines are likely to release their schedule of flights from the airport shortly.
Being hopeful about the state’s betterment by this airport, Suresh Prabhu said at the inaugural function, “The greenfield airport was expected to pave way for the state’s overall development and prosperity, especially in the northern region. Besides boosting tourism and exports, the airport will help in creating several job opportunities and will certainly help the non-resident Keralites (NRKs), especially in the Gulf region.”
Throwing some light towards the designing of the airport, the onlookers can have a sight of Mural paintings portraying the heritage of Malabar and Indian dance forms, along with the traditional theatre art form of Karnataka – Theyyam, Kathakali and Yakshagana. The designing incorporates the culture and tradition of the neighbouring Kodagu as well.
With splendid art-forms and a systematic operation, Kunnur International airport has set a new benchmark for the constructions of future airports in the country.
