T3 to be operational from April 18 in Kochi

KOCHI: The Cochin International Airport Ltd (Cial)'s new international terminal, T3, will be fully operational on April 18. The terminal was commissioned on March 11.
Delay in arrival of additional CISF officers, sanctioned by the home ministry to strengthen security at the new terminal, has slowed down transfer of operations from the existing terminal to T3.
The late arrival of CISF officers were due to the increased security requirements in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Goa, Manipur and Uttarakhand because of the state government elections.
CISF has informed Cial officials that they would start operations in Kochi on April 16.
Cial later informed that all international flight operators would relocate operations from T1 to T3 by 1pm on April 18.
Following the transfer of operations, Cial will start working on converting the existing international terminal as the new domestic terminal.
Currently, the existing domestic terminal is only one lakh sq ft wide. Once the terminal is shifted, the new domestic terminal will be sufficient to cater to the passenger growth as it will span five times the area of the existing domestic terminal.
Cial introduced direct flights to two new sectors, Jaipur and Kolkata. This summer schedule accounts for an increased number of domestic flights connecting Kochi and other domestic destinations with 662 flights per week.