Cochin international airport is situated at Nedumbassery, which is 10 km away from Kochi. Originally, it used to be a world war second air for the Indian Royal army, which was even after independence used by the Indian navy for their military purposes, although few civilian aircrafts were permitted to make use of the air stripes. The airport that we see today has been developed as a result of the combined efforts of the people of the state, the state government and all those NRI who have their roots in state of Kerala, and who also gave handsome donations so that the airport could become a reality.
When an airport plan for Cochin was passed during May 1993, it was considered as one of the bravest decisions that were taken in and around the terrain, because many important electric and water as well as sewage and drainage lines had to be shifted for the course of the construction. Land accumulating to 1500 acres was taken in for the venture and the same was inaugurated by the president of India on May 25 1999, though the first take off could be possible on June 10 itself.
The floor area of the airport on the it was opened was 2,50,000 which was then later increased to 4,20,000 by 2004 by undertaking different additive construction works for exclusive international arrival terminal, international departure blocks etc. The phase four of the works include broadening of the domestic terminal, and all these would increase the floor space to roughly 8, 38,000 sq feet.
Cochin International Airport is the first of its kind regarding the ownership, as it endorses public-private partner ships, with many gulf enterprises and few Indian ventures like State Bank, Federal banks holding its stake. However, Kerala government holds the largest share though.
It has 8 domestic and 16 international airlines that connect Kochi with 40 odd destinations across the globe. This airport is considered busiest and is ranked as 4th in that terms, and is handling 4.3 million passengers with air traffic movement of 411 a week. It has also been graded as the 7th best in India. The airport does have VIP and international level lounges for the travelers that are at par with the norms decided. Every day the airport deals with around 10,800 passengers making it one of the most used terminals of south India.
