Kozhikode Karippur airport gets international airport status

After Thiruvananthapuram and Cochin, Karippur is the new international airport for Kerala

BY A CORRESPONDENT
February 2, 2006

The Kozhikode Airport in Kerala will be upgraded to the status of an international airport.
The final decision on this was taken at a meeting of the Union Cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. With this, the southern state of Kerala will have three international airports, the others being Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi.

Located 30 km away from the city centre, the Kozhikode Airport is located at Karippur. With the new status for Kozhikode, the only airport in Kerala which is non-international is at Kannur.

In New Delhi, Information and Broadcasting Minister Priyaranjan Dasmunsi told reporters that several international flights were already operated from Kozhikode at present. However, the upgradation of the Kozhikode Airport would get it a place in the map of international flight operations. As part of the new status, Kozhikode Airport would get its
runway and other infrastructure augmented, besides strengthening of the security apparatus.

There has been demand for according international status to Kozhikode Airport in view of the heavy traffic to and from Gulf countries. Kerala has a huge emigrant population in the Gulf, contributing significantly to the state's economy.