Tirupati’s domestic airport declared International
08 Oct 2008
The Government has declared the existing domestic airport at Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh as an International Airport, on account of persistent demand.
Being a prominent pilgrimage destination, Tirupati receives around 60,000 pilgrims each day, including non-resident Indians (NRI), persons of Indian origin (PIOs), and the foreigners. Currently, pilgrims transit to Tirupati through international airports at Chennai, Bangalore or Hyderabad.
According to the Convention of International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), International airport is defined as "any airport designated by the Contracting State as an airport of entry and departure for international air traffic, where the formalities incident to customs, immigration, public health, animal and plant quarantine and similar procedure are carried out".
An international airport at Tirupati facilitates direct connectivity to the pilgrimage spot, and is likely to provide further impetus to tourism and economic activity in the region.
The Tirupati airport belongs to Airports Authority of India (AAI), and is suitable for all weather operation of A320 type of aircraft. The terminal building can handle 300 passengers at a time, and has been upgraded for night time operations, which has made the terminal capable of handling limited international operations.
The AAI is in the process of further upgrading the airport, with a proposal to construct a new integrated terminal building to handle 700 passengers at a time, both international and domestic.