Veer Savarkar International Airport

Veer Savarkar International Airport^[4][5], commonly known as Port Blair Airport (IATA: IXZ, ICAO: VOPB), is an airport located 2 km (1.2 mi) south of Port Blair and is the main airport of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India. It is named after the Indian freedom fighter Vinayak Damodar Savarkar.

Overview

The airport has a single runway of 3,290 m (10,794 ft) in length, accommodating most wide-body aircraft, although the most recent reports indicate no airliners larger than Airbus 320 types regularly serve Vir Savakar airport. An ILS (precision instrument landing system) is available for low visibility operations, but pilots are responsible to check with local authorities to verify the system is operational, prior to flight. There is a road that crosses the runway; traffic must be stopped for aircraft to take off, similar to the Gibraltar Airport.

With such a small terminal and the isolation of the islands, flights that serve the airport are few and expensive. Restricted Area Permits for the Andaman and Nicobar Islands are available on entry.

There is only one terminal with 2 gates and no aero bridges. Buses are used to provide transportation from the terminal to the flights in the apron. As of April 2009, construction work to add a second airplane parking bay is in progress.

Heavy rain flooded the airport during May 2008 ^[6] and halted traffic.

Airlines and destinations

References

1. ^ http://www.aai.aero/traffic_news/mar2k11annex3.pdf
2. ^ http://www.aai.aero/traffic_news/mar2k11annex2.pdf
3. ^ http://www.aai.aero/traffic_news/mar2k11annex4.pdf
4. ^ http://www.aai.aero/tenders/CISF%20Van.pdf
5. ^ Port Blair airport named after Veer Savarkar
6. ^ Heavy rains submerge Port Blair airport, air travel hit

External links

• Vir Savarkar Airport (official Airports Authority of India web site)
• Airport information for VOPB at World Aero Data. Data current as of October 2006.