Calicut International Airport Malappuram

19/06/2023

Karipur International Airport completes runway re-carpeting work in record time:

The Airports Authority of India (AAI) accomplished an incredible milestone by completing re-carpeting work at Karipur Airport (CCJ) in a record time of 120 days, much ahead of the scheduled date, an official statement said on Tuesday.
The project aimed at enhancing the safety standards of the airport was completed with an estimated project cost of Rs 60 crore including re-carpeting of the 2.86 km runway, fixing of Runway Centre Line lights and Touchdown Zone lights.
The re-carpeting work of any runway of over 2.5 kms takes 8 to 9 months on average. The work for re-carpeting the runway of Calicut Airport commenced on January 27, 2023, and successfully completed on June 2, 2023, well before the onset of monsoons in Kerala.

The re-carpeting work included milling - i.e. removal of previous bituminous layer surface, re-carpeting (2860 meters long runway, runway shoulders, taxiway and RESA), providing glass fibre reinforcement grid and laying of Runway Centre Line Lighting (RCLL) and Touch Down Zone Lights (TDZ), which was completed in just 120 days.

This feat could be achieved by AAI owing to its meticulous planning and efficient project monitoring and ex*****on.

According to the statement, airport runways are built to comply with internationally mandated standards. Frequent landing and take-off of flights lead to wear and tear of runways over a period of time. Natural weather phenomena like rain and sun also affect the runway surface.

Thus, depending on the volume of traffic and the variety of aircraft, the runway needs to be re-carpeted as per the operational requirements. This is done by taking into consideration various factors including, how busy the airport is and the variety of aircraft that it handles etc.

The re-carpeting of the 2.86 km Karipur Airport Runway and allied works were planned meticulously. As the runway was closed for operations during the day (NOTAM initiated for closure of runway), all daytime flights were rescheduled for the night. Since the closure of the runway was from 10 AM to 6 PM, this didn't have any major impact on the night traffic.

The work was planned in such a way that the runway was readied for landings and take-offs by 6 PM every day. Although Karipur Airport has 70 to 80 flight movements every day, less than 10 flights operate during day time (between 10 AM and 6 PM) and arrangements were in place to cater to rescheduled flights and the resultant footfall.

Karipur International Airport situated on hilly terrain surrounded by a lush green valley in Malappuram is currently handling 70 movements and approximately 4000 passenger footfalls per day.
Airport Authority of India Malappuram Collector Dr. M.P Abdussamad Samadani

15/12/2018

Karipur International Airport, Malappuram Airport Authority of India SAUDIA AIRLINES الخطوط السعودية

Big birds back in Karipur!
SAUDIA A330 Jeddah-Malapuram/Calicut service

Saudia’s A 330 first wide-bodied aircraft landed at Karipur airport after 3 years.

The Karipur international airport in Malappuram witnessed jubilant scenes on Wednesday when a wide-bodied Airbus 330 aircraft of Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia) made a landing there after a hiatus of three years.

Saudia became the first airliner to resume operations from Karipur after the airport was closed for large flights in May 2015. Saudi Arabian Ambassador to India Saud Mohammed Al-Sati and top officials of Saudia joined Parliament members PK Kunhalikutty, ET Muhammad Basheer, M.K. Raghavan, and PV Abdul Wahab in celebrating the occasion at Karipur.

They welcomed the 211 passengers of the inaugural flight SV746 by offering them sweets and garlands. The passengers came out of the terminal building to a thundering reception of ‘sringarimelam’.

Various socio-political, cultural, and religious organisations celebrated the occasion by taking out marches and hailing those who strived to bring back wide-bodied aircraft to Karipur.

The inaugural flight, which took off from Jeddah at 3.10 a.m. (local time) and landed at Karipur at 11.10 a.m., was given a one-minute customary water salute by two crash fire tenders (CFTs) before it entered the parking bay. Malappuram MP Mr. Kunhalikutty, Mr. Basheer, and Mr. Raghavan described the occasion historic as there were serious doubts about the resumption of wide-bodied flight operations from Karipur. They said Karipur regained what it deserved. Bringing back Haj operations to Karipur was quite an achievement, they said.

Bridging the gap

Addressing the media, Saudia’s assistant vice president (AVP) for international region Nowaf N. Aljakthami said the resumption of Karipur service would go a long way in bridging the gap between two brotherly nations.

Saudia’s manager in India Ibrahim M. Alqubbi and operations manager Hani Al-Julhum were present.

Saudia will fly A330, one of the most reliable aircraft in its fleet, to operate seven services a week from Karipur. It will fly between Jeddah and Karipur on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, and between Riyadh and Karipur on Tuesdays, Fridays, and Sundays.

Saudia officials said the large underbelly of A330 would help improve cargo movement from Karipur.

10/12/2018