Air traffic passengers growth up by 2%

Visakhapatnam: Concerned over the reducing number of flights over a period from 80 to 60 flights movement a day, Andhra Pradesh Air Travellers Association (APATA) decided to take up the matter with the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Defence Ministry for taking necessary measures.

Closure of Jet Airways leading to removal of several flights, repair and maintenance of many alliance aircraft of Air India, non-payment of promised viability gap funding to Alliance Air, navy's restrictions on civil movements, non-availability of slots for new aircraft and single direction runway in Visakhapatnam airport were some of the reasons cited by the APATA for slow growth of passengers leading to reduction in number of flights.

However, APATA representatives said that even though the movement of flight was down, passenger growth continues to be up by 2 per cent, indicative of the air traffic growth in the months of May, June and July. They said there was also a 9 per cent growth in the domestic cargo handling through the airport in the past couple of months.

But there is a dip of 33 per cent in the international cargo handling during the same period, according to APATA representatives, including K Kumar Raja, O Naresh Kumar and D S Varma.