Kochi: The new business jet terminal at Cochin International Airport is receiving tremendous response and has achieved the major milestone of 100 flight landings since its opening on December 10, 2022.
While 39 business jets landed at the terminal in December last year, the number touched 50 in January, 2023. The remaining flights which led to a century of landings arrived in February.
Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL) at Nedumbassery in Kerala is only the fourth airport in India to open an exclusive terminal for business jets after Delhi, Mumbai and Ahmedabad. While the business terminals in the Metros charge up to US Dollar 4,000 per flight for using the facility, CIAL’s rate is less than USD 1,200 (around Rs 1 lakh). CIAL collects this amount for upkeep of customer services and does not charge any landing or parking fees.
“CIAL received Rs 1.10 crore from the business terminal during the last two months. Next year, we are expecting 1,000 business jets to arrive at the airport, with an average of five landings a day,” said S Suhas, its Managing Director.
Features, advantages
The punch line of the business jet terminal at CIAL is ‘Flight door to car door in two minutes.’ As it is so convenient to reach the car from the aircraft, the popularity of the terminal is growing at a steady pace. In fact, while the lowest number of passengers carried by a flight to the terminal is one, the largest number so far is 42.
Apart from Customs and Immigration facilities, the business terminal also flaunts a premium duty-paid shop where liquor worth Rs 8,500 to Rs 1 lakh is available. There are five premium lounges at the business terminal and ordinary passengers will not be affected even when VVIPs and dignitaries such as the Prime Minister arrive. CIAL authorities have also opened a foreign exchange counter at the business terminal.
In January 2022, 20 business jets had arrived at Kochi Airport and there were an average of 25 landings during the following months. Subsequently, CIAL authorities decided to open an exclusive jet terminal and the departure terminal of the old domestic airport was chosen as the site. CIAL soon spent Rs 30 crore to arrange the necessary facilities.
The arrival of a large number of destination wedding travellers on chartered flights from Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan after the COVID-19 crisis eased also prompted the authorities to launch the exclusive private terminal.