Coimbatore: The airport director has stated that NITI Aayog has approved the master plan for the Coimbatore airport expansion project, and that work will begin after approval is received from the Union Cabinet.
In this regard, Coimbatore Airport Director Mohamed Arif told reporters today (Sept. 16): “In order to provide awareness and better service to air passengers, the Passenger Service Drive (Yatriseva Abhiyan) will begin tomorrow (Thursday) and will be held for a total of 24 days until the 10th of next month. This campaign is being conducted to make air travel easier for passengers and improve facilities. As part of it, cultural programs, guidance, medical camps, and more will be held.
Coimbatore Airport currently operates on 400 acres of land. Taking future needs into account, an expansion plan over an additional 627 acres is set to be implemented. Of this, the Tamil Nadu government has handed over 621 acres of land to the Airports Authority. The remaining 6 acres will be handed over soon.
As a first step, construction work on the compound wall has begun. In one area, landowners had raised objections regarding the provision of space for a pathway, and the district administration intervened and resolved the issue. After the expansion works are completed, the airport will increase to 1,047 acres. Land has been acquired and handed over for the expansion work. Therefore, the airport expansion work is to be carried out at a cost of Rs. 2,132 crore.
Several measures are to be undertaken, including increasing the length of the existing runway, constructing a grand new arrival and departure terminal building on the other side of the runway, and setting up various infrastructure facilities for passenger convenience.
The master plan for the airport expansion project has been approved by NITI Aayog. We are awaiting approval from the Union Cabinet. Once permission is granted, expansion work will begin. All infrastructure work will be completed within three years.
At present, 26 flights are operated daily from Coimbatore Airport. Since additional flights will be operated starting next November, the number of flights will increase to 30.
To reduce the current congestion, the domestic security screening area is being expanded. This will provide an additional 1,000 square meters of space. This work will be completed by this coming December.
There have been continuous complaints regarding the collection of fees in the airport car parking area. Therefore, it has been decided to replace the current contractor. The imposition of a Rs. 500 fine if a vehicle is parked for more than 3 minutes is not done by the contractor. It is imposed through A.I. (artificial intelligence),” he said.