At Rajahmundry Airport, the new terminal building is expected to be operational by the end of 2025, following the laying of the foundation stone on Sunday.
“We expect it to be completed by the next two years. So let’s say by December 2025,” Sanjeev Kumar, Chairman Airports Authority of India, said minutes after the foundation stone was laid by Union civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia.
The new terminal building would be spread over 17,000 square meters. The current terminal is spread over 4000 square meters.
The new terminal will be able to cater eight to ten flights per hour, AAI Chairman told said. “It will have the capacity of 2,000 passengers in the peak hour.”
The new terminal at Rajahmundry Airport is estimated to cost about Rs 350 crore.
Giving details about the terminal, the AAI Chairman said it will have 30 check-in encounters, eight security lanes with express machines, and three aerobridges.
“So the modern terminal which we see in our metropolitan city would also be developed in Rajahmundry Airport,” he said.
“As of now, it is connected to Bengaluru, Chennai and Hyderabad. We hope that with bigger planes coming in, it will get connected to North India and Western India also. And also eastern India. And will improve the connectivity of Rajahmundry. With this air connectivity, I am sure this new terminal building when ready would prove to be a boon to the economy of Rajahmundry and neighbouring towns,” he added.
He stated that AAI spent roughly Rs 5,200 crore on capital expenditures in the previous year. “In fact, we have completed more than Rs 5,200 crore in capital expenditures in the last year or so, which set a record for AAI. We intend to invest more than Rs 5,000 crore this year as well,” he continued.