Trivandrum International Airport

Trivandrum International Airport
തിരുവനന്തപുരം അന്താരാഷ്ട്ര വിമാനത്താവളം
Thiruvananthapuram Airport
IATA: TRV – ICAO: VOTV
Summary
Airport type Public
Operator Airports Authority of India
Serves Thiruvananthapuram
Location Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala,
 India
Hub for
Elevation AMSL 13 ft / 4 m
Coordinates 08°28′56″N 76°55′12″E / 8.48222°N 76.92000°E / 8.48222; 76.92000Coordinates: 08°28′56″N 76°55′12″E / 8.48222°N 76.92000°E / 8.48222; 76.92000
Website trivandrumairport
Map
TRV

Location in Kerala

Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
14/32 3,400 11,200 Asphalt
Statistics (April 2015 - March 2016)
Passenger movements 3,470,788
Aircraft movements 26,001
Cargo tonnage 35,570
Source: AAI,[1][2]

Trivandrum International Airport (IATA: TRV, ICAO: VOTV) is in Thiruvananthapuram and is the first airport in the state of Kerala, India. It was the fifth international airport of India declared by then Prime Minister Shri V.P. Singh in 1991.[3]

The Trivandrum International (TRV) airport terminal is approximately 3.7 km (2.3 mi) due west from the city centre,[3]16 km (9.9 mi) from Kovalam beach, 13 km (8.1 mi) from Technopark Thiruvananthapuram and 21 km (13 mi) from the under construction Vizhinjam International Seaport spread over an area of 700 acres (280 ha). There are flights to Middle eastern and South eastern countries from here.

Trivandrum International Airport operates two terminals. Terminal 1 handles domestic flight operations (except Air India) and Terminal 2 handles all international flight operations as well as all domestic flights by Air India.[4]

In addition to civil operations, Trivandrum Airport caters to the Indian Air Force (IAF) and the Coast Guard for their strategic operations. IAF have an exclusive apron to handle all their operations. Trivandrum airport also caters to the Rajiv Gandhi Academy for Aviation Technology which carries out pilot training activities.[5]

Trivandrum International Airport hoists Air India's Narrow body Maintenance,repair & overhaul unit — MRO consisting of twin hangars for servicing Boeing 737 type aircraft, servicing mostly Air India Express aircraft.

History

The airport was established in 1932 as part of the Royal Flying Club under the initiative of Colonel Goda Varma Raja, Consort Prince of HRH Queen Karthika Thirunal of Travancore Kingdom.[6] Col G.V Raja, a trained pilot, felt the need an airport to accommodate Travancore in the aviation map of India and requested to Travancore Durbar to initate process for establishing an aerodrome. A detailed report was made and presented to the King by Consort Prince in this regard.

In 1935, on royal patronage of H.H Maharaja Chithira Thirunal, Tata Airlines made its maiden flight to the airport using DH.83 Fox Moth aircraft under command of India's first pilot Nevill Vintcent carrying Jamshed Navoroji, a Tata company official, and Kanchi Dwarakadas, commercial agent of Travancore in Karachi with a special mail from Viceroy of British India, Lord Willingdon wishing birthday greetings to the Maharaja.[7]

The first flight took off on 1 November 1935, carrying mails of Royal Anchal (Travancore Post) to Bombay. In 1938, the Royal Government of Travancore acquired a Dakota as Maharaja's private aircraft and placed the first squadron of Royal Indian Air Force (Travancore) for protection of state from aerial attacks. After Independence, the airstrip was used for domestic flights with construction of a domestic terminal: T1.

International operations were initiated by Air India to cities in the Arabian Peninsula in the late 1970s using Boeing 707. By early 80s, the then Indian Airlines started service to Colombo, followed by service to Male. Later, SriLankan Airlines (then Air Lanka) and Air Maldives (now Maldivian started operations. Followed by Indian Airlines, that started a service to Sharjah. On 1 January 1991, TIA was upgraded to an international airport, making it the fifth international airport of India after Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai & Kolkata.

On 1 March 2011, the first flight operated from the new international terminal. IX 536 (Air India Express) from Sharjah marked the first arrival. Air India Express operated the first departure to Dubai from this new terminal.

Terminals

The domestic terminal (Terminal 1)
Domestic Terminal Lounge (Terminal 1)

There are two terminals. Terminal 1 is for domestic (except Air India) and Terminal 2 for international flights & all domestic flights of Air India. [8] The domestic terminal has an area of 9,200 m2 (99,000 sq ft) and can handle 400 passengers at a time. The Terminal 3 (NITB: New International Terminal Building) and the International Terminal can handle 1,600 passengers at a time.[9]

The international terminal ground operations are handled by Air India SATS Airport Services Pvt. Ltd. and Bhadra International India Pvt. Ltd. It is fully air-conditioned with wi-fi facility. The terminal features spacious lounges, natural lighting with extensive use of glass roofing and better conveyance facilities for passengers. It has three baggage carousels and elaborate immigration/customs facilities. Flemingo, India's first privately owned duty-free operator is managing the duty-free shop at the international terminal.

The domestic terminal has basic amenities including cafés, a beer & wine bar, a book-seller, free local calls, phone-recharging points.[10]

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

AirlinesDestinationsTerminal
Air ArabiaSharjah2
Air IndiaDelhi, Kochi,Chennai, Bangalore,[11] Mumbai, Malé, Riyadh, Sharjah 2
Air India ExpressAbu Dhabi, Chennai, Dubai-International, Kochi, Kozhikode, Muscat, Salalah, Sharjah 2
Air PegasusBangalore, Mangalore1
EmiratesDubai-International2
Etihad AirwaysAbu Dhabi2
flydubaiDubai-International2
Gulf AirBahrain2
IndiGoBangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Varanasi (outbound only)1
IndiGoDubai-International, Bangalore, Pune [12]2
Jet AirwaysMumbai 1
Jet AirwaysBangalore, Dehradun (resumes 1 October 2016), Delhi, Dammam, Doha, Muscat2
Kuwait AirwaysKuwait2
MaldivianHanimaadhoo, Malé 2
Malindo AirKuala Lumpur–International 2
Oman AirMuscat2
Qatar AirwaysDoha2
SilkAirSingapore2
SpiceJetChennai [13]1
SriLankan AirlinesColombo2

Cargo

Saudi Arabian Cargo Boeing 747-400F at Thiruvananthapuram
AirlinesDestinations
FitsAirColombo
Qatar Airways CargoColombo, Doha
SriLankan CargoColombo
Saudia CargoDammam, Hong Kong, Riyadh
Emirates SkyCargoDubai-Al Maktoum, Hong Kong

Facilities

Inside Terminal 2
Terminal 2 Baggage Carousel
Terminal 2 Operational Area

The newly built Terminal 2 has three additional jetways and parking bays to accommodate 8 aircraft. The terminal is built opposite to the current terminal across the runway and is closer to the city side. The terminal, constructed by the AAI and designed by the UK firm, Pascall+Watson architects, is expected to provide impetus to the development of the IT sector and the tourism industry in the southern districts of Kerala.

The international terminal covers an area of 35,000 m2 (380,000 sq ft). It is able to handle the passengers of three Airbus A340s and one Boeing 747 aircraft simultaneously (roughly 1500 passengers).[14] The annual handling capacity of the terminal will be 1.8 million.

The check-in area has a floor area of 950 m2 (10,200 sq ft) and the arrival area 600 m2 (6,500 sq ft). To enable the passengers to check in at any counter, a Common Users Terminal Equipment (CUTE) is installed. X-ray machines are attached to the side of the conveyor belts for faster clearance of baggage.

The entrance to the terminal is from the Chaka-Eenchakkal road. A bridge has been built across the Parvathy Puthanar canal to link the new terminal to the Kazhakuttam-Inchivila NH (National Highway) 47 bypass.[15] The new terminal has a car park area that can accommodate about 600 cars.

There is a pre paid taxi service counter and foreign exchange(Thomas Cook India) counter on arrivals area.[16]

There are plans to build a parallel taxiway, an isolation bay, an aerobridge and an apron in the international terminal, a turning pad, and expand the security area in the domestic terminal. It costs Rs.130 crore.[17]

Trivandrum airport is included in Ministry of civil aviation strategic plan for 2010-2015 to upgrade as Category-A airport by developing to aerodrome CODE 4E/4F, construct parallel runway with taxiways alongside both runways and so forth.

Visa on Arrival

The Visa on Arrival facility (VOA) service is available and allows citizens of 44 countries — Australia, Brazil, Cambodia, Cook Islands, Djibouti, Fiji, Finland, Germany, Guyana, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Kiribati, Laos, Luxembourg, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Mexico, Micronesia, Myanmar, Nauru, New Zealand,Niue Island, Norway, Oman, Palau, Palestine, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Republic of Korea, Russia, Samoa, Singapore, Solomon Islands,Thailand, Tonga, Tuvalu, UAE, Ukraine, USA, Vanuatu, Vietnam — to obtain tourist visas upon arrival.[18]

Cargo operations

The cargo activities at the Trivandrum Airport are carried out through the Kerala State Industrial Enterprises (KSIE), a government of Kerala undertaking). The cargo warehouse is on the airport premises. It has a capacity to import 21000 MT and export 27000 MT per annum. In 2010-11 (up to December 2010), the airport achieved MT of import cargo and MT of export cargo. The KSIE is developing a satellite cargo import facility on a temporary basis at the NITB terminal for perishable cargo handling till their final master plan is implemented for developing a huge cargo warehouse on 15 acres of land adjoining the NITB. Major cargo jets such as Emirates has begun flights to TIA six times a week.[19]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "TRAFFIC STATISTICS - DOMESTIC & INTERNATIONAL PASSENGERS" (jsp). Aai.aero. Retrieved 5 May 2016.
  2. ↑ List of busiest airports in India by passenger traffic
  3. 1 2 Trivandrum International Airport
  4. ↑ "Thiruvananthapuram International Airport currently operates two terminals. Terminal 1 handles all domestic flight operations and Terminal 2 handles international flight operations. - Image". Airport Technology. 2011-06-15. Retrieved 2014-05-05.
  5. ↑ Rajiv Gandhi Academy for Aviation Technology
  6. ↑ "Trivandrum International Airport, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala". Airport Technology. Retrieved 2011-03-01.
  7. ↑ PTI (2010-10-29). "States / Kerala : Kerala celebrates 75th anniversary of civil aviation". Chennai, India: The Hindu. Retrieved 2011-03-01.
  8. ↑ "Airports Authority of India". Aai.aero. 2010-04-20. Retrieved 2014-05-05.
  9. ↑ Passenger traffic
  10. ↑ "Experience — On the ground — Airport Lounge". SilkAir. Retrieved 2011-03-01.
  11. ↑ "Air India introduces daily return flight from Bangalore to Trivandrum". NetIndian. 15 March 2016. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
  12. ↑ "IndiGo's TRV-BLR-PNQ flight operates from international terminal". facebook. 24 February 2016. Retrieved 1 March 2016.
  13. ↑ . 15 April 2016 http://www.spicejet.com/Schedules.aspx. Retrieved 15 April 2016. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  14. ↑ The Hindu News Title:World class terminal for Thiruvananthapuram International Airport
  15. ↑ Airport inauguration
  16. ↑ "Terminal may put development on fast track". The Hindu (Chennai, India). 12 February 2011.
  17. ↑ "Rs.130-cr. facility uplift at Thiruvananthapuram international airport". The Hindu. 6 January 2014. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
  18. ↑ "Indian Tourist Visa on Arrival". Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. Retrieved 2015-04-02.
  19. ↑ http://www.aai.aero/misc/trivandrum_airport.pdf

External links

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