The greenfield Visakhapatnam airport at Bhogapuram in Vizianagaram district is set to be inaugurated in the first week of July, with commercial flights commencing their maiden landings and takeoffs from July 8. The airport has been named after the legendary freedom fighter Alluri Sitara Rama Raju, and the inauguration ceremony will be conducted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Officials are working against the clock to finalize all necessary arrangements, including stringent security protocols for the VVIP visit.
Location and Development Model
Situated approximately 50 kilometers from Visakhapatnam, this greenfield airport is being developed under a public-private partnership (PPP) model by the GMR Group. In its first phase, the airport is designed to handle an impressive capacity of six million passengers per annum, with provisions for future expansion to accommodate growing demand.
Trial and Validation Flight
The airport successfully completed its trial and validation flight on January 4, marking a significant milestone in its operational readiness. Travelers holding tickets from the existing Visakhapatnam airport for dates on or after July 8 are advised to verify their flight departure points carefully.
Check-in and Airline Operations
According to Kanneganti Vijay Mohan, president of the Tours and Travel Agents Association of AP (TTAA), check-in counters for airlines shifting to the new airport will be located at Terminal-1. He stated, "We came through the Scoot Airlines alert that the flights from July 8 would be operated from Bhogapuram airport instead of Visakhapatnam airport." Scoot Airlines has proactively sent messages to travel agents, notifying them of the change in airport for Visakhapatnam flights. The airline officially announced that all Scoot flights to and from Visakhapatnam will now operate from Alluri Sitarama Raju International Airport instead of the existing Visakhapatnam International Airport.
Additional Information
For reference, readers can also check the latest rates for gold, silver, bank holidays, public holidays, petrol, diesel, CNG, and LPG in Vijayawada, though these are not directly related to the airport development.
