CIAL plans Europe flight

Top officials of Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL) have embarked on a European tour to woo foreign carriers to start direct flights between Kochi and the West by offering major concessions.
“It is a long pending demand of passengers to have direct connectivity to various European destinations. Since we discovered that some international carriers are planning India operations, we want to start operations from Kochi. We are willing to offer substantial concessions, especially in landing and parking fees,” a top official said.
Airport director A.C.K. Nair and senior manager (operations) C. Dinesh Kumar flew to Germany to hold talks with top officials in Lufthansa Airlines, the official said.
Currently, there are no direct flights to Europe or US from the state and passengers have to take connecting flights from other metro cities or from Qatar or Dubai.
A survey held by the airport authorities reveals about 3,000 per month want to fly to the West. They have to spend up to four hours in transit while travelling to these places.
With airlines such as Lufthansa, Cathy Pacific and British Airways mooting India operations, CIAL has offered concessions in landing, parking, and other charges to the carriers.
04/10/11 Krishna Kumar K. E./Deccan Chronicle

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Categories: airports Oct 2011, Foreign Oct 2011