Trichy Airport Undergoes Renovation

Tuesday, 12th June 2012 at 01:26am

From December 2011 up to May 31, 2012, the Trichy Airport was able to export 991 tonnes of cargo despite the many hurdles it encountered along the way. The airport's cargo terminal was officially opened to exporters on November 22 last year after it underwent a major renovation that cost the airport Rs.1 crore. The airport handled a total of 93 tonnes of export goods during its first month of operation, in December 2011. In May 2012 alone, 285 tonnes of cargo passed through the terminal, or an increase of almost 300 percent over a five-month period.

The cargo terminal has a one-time holding capacity of 250 metric tonnes but the average daily export of up to 10 tonnes from the airport is already appreciable as there are only three airlines using the cargo terminal, namely: Mihin Lanka, Air Asia and Sri Lankan Airlines.

Besides, the export cargo carried by Mihin Lanka doesn't contribute significantly to the total amount as it only agrees to carry 5 tonnes per month. The potential of the airport as an export cargo hub is projected to grow in the coming months considering that passenger flights, not cargo flights, take the cargo. The passenger flights which usually utilize the Airbus A320 aircraft, have limited space available for cargo. Moreover, Air India and Tiger Airways, the other two carriers serving the airport don't accept export cargo yet in their planes.

By: Pete Lee.