Smaller airports see passenger traffic surge

Spurred by cheap fares and rapid economic growth, the fastest growth in the number of air passengers is taking place in smaller cities like Pune, Raipur, Coimbatore and Ahmedabad, to name a few.
Based on figures from state-owned carriers, these airports grew between 60 per cent and 82 per cent in calendar 2006 over the previous year.
In contrast, major airports like Mumbai and Delhi grew by over 20 per cent and over 35 per cent, respectively, though, strictly, comparisons are not possible since the two operate on a far higher base of 22.25 million and 20.44 million passengers.
The growth in the number of air passengers in small cities reflects the growth of both manufacturing and service industries in small-town India, which, in turn, has spurred purchasing power.
It is also a result of moves by budget carriers to aggressively tap these markets by starting new services, helped by the government's airport upgrade programme.
15/05/07 Anirban Chowdhury/Business Standard

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Categories: Airports May 2007, General Aviation May 2007