Along with Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport and Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport it handles more than half of the air traffic in South Asia.The domestic and the international terminals are named after former chief ministers of Tamil Nadu, K. Kamaraj and C.N. Annadurai, respectively. It is the first airport in India to have international and domestic terminals adjacent to each other.[4] The airport is the regional headquarters of the Airports Authority of India for the southern region of India comprising the states of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Kerala and the union territories of Puducherry and Lakshadweep.
As of 2012, the airport handles 13.5 million passengers annually and about 325 aircraft movements a day. The airport is expected to reach saturation by 2016–17, necessitating the construction of a second international airport.
The aviation history of the city began in 1910, when a city-based Corsican hotelier Giacomo D'Angelis built an aircraft and tested it.Inspired by Louis Blériot, a Frenchman who was the first to fly across the English Channel in July 1909, D'Angelis collaborated with Simpson's, a leading coach-builder in the city, to build a biplane.
The biplane was built entirely from D'Angelis's own designs, fitted with a small horse-power engine. Samuel John Green, a motor engineer at Simpson's, helped with the manufacture and assembly of the biplane. On 10 March 1910, D'Angelis tested the aircraft in the suburb of Pallavaram, making it the first flight ever in Asia.While demonstrating it to the public during the ticketed show, he even took a person from the crowd on the aircraft as his passenger. Immediately, he also arranged a public viewing at the Island Grounds, charging entrance fees for the demonstration.
Giacomo D'Angelis and his biplane in 1910, the first flight ever in Asia
One more test flight was conducted at the Island Grounds in 1914, when J. W. Madley, a water works engineer, tested an aircraft assembled by him. He flew it over the Red Hills reservoir to inspect works and shot a couple of aerial photographs of the reservoir from the aircraft.[9] This incident kindled an interest in flying among prominent residents of the city, resulting in the arrival of a set of aviators in 1911 to display the flying machines they had brought with them to India as a marketing initiative.
The aviators included Baron de Caters and Jules Tyck.[11] On 15 February 1911, Tyck flew in a Bleriot airplane in front of the public. The aircraft was wheeled out by eight men with Tyck seated inside the craft wearing an oilskin coat and goggles. The men held the plane till its engine revved up and then let go, and the craft darted forward about 20 yards before rising into the air. In the air, the craft made a straight flight only for about three-quarters of the length of the ground and descended due to poor weather. Tyck few again the next day, this time reaching a height of 2,400 feet, which was witnessed by the then Governor of Madras Sir Arthur Lawley.Two days later, on 18 February, another demonstration was given by Baron de Caters, when he flew his aircraft in public.
The history of civil aviation in India began in December 1912, with the opening of the first domestic air route between Karachi and Delhi by the Indian state Air services in collaboration with the Imperial Airways, United Kingdom. However, it was just an extension of London–Karachi flight of the Imperial Airways. In 1915, the first Indian airline, Tata Sons Ltd, started a regular airmail service between Karachi and Madras without any patronage from the government, marking the beginning of air transportation in the southern part of India.
In March 1930, a discussion initiated by pilot G. Vlasto led to the founding of Madras Flying Club, which became a pioneer in South India.[8][9] The club had 71 founding members, of whom 14 were Indians. Flt. Lt. H. N. Hawker became the club's first flight instructor. The club's first Indian chief pilot instructor, Mohammed Ismail Khan, trained several pilots, some of whom were trained professionally or others simply for fun.
Among those who trained for hobby included S. A. A. Annamalai Chettiar, who had a pilot licence from the United Kingdom, Auvadaiappan, and Solayappan. When the state council of Ceylon built an aerodrome at Ratnamala near Colombo in 1935, the first flight to land there was flown by chief flying instructor of the club Tyndale Biscoe. On 26 October 1936, Captain V. Sundaram, who got the first commercial pilot licence, flew a De Havilland Dove aircraft from Karachi to Madras.
On 15 October 1932, when J. R. D. Tata, founder of Tata Sons Ltd., flew a single-engined De Havilland Puss Moth carrying air mail (postal mail of Imperial Airways) from Karachi's Drigh Road Aerodrome to Bombay's Juhu Airstrip via Ahmedabad, the flight was continued to Madras via Bellary piloted by aviator Nevill Vintcent.
Madras (Chennai) had one of the first airports in India and was the final destination of Air India's first flight from Bombay (Mumbai) via Belgaum in 1954.[14] The airport was built on land donated by the former governor of Madras Presidency, L. Sriramulu Naidu.[14] Although the first aircraft "Puss Moth" landed in Chennai Airport in 1932, the usage was confined only to military operations during the World War II In 1952, the Civil Aviation Department took over its operations followed by the IAAI in 1972.
An air cargo complex was commissioned on 1 February 1978 for processing of import, export, and transshipment cargo, in addition to unaccompanied luggage,] which is the second gateway air cargo terminal in the country after the one at Kolkata airport. The first passenger terminal was built at the northeast side of the airfield, which lies in the suburb of Meenambakkam due to which it was referred to as Meenambakkam Airport. A new terminal complex was subsequently built at Tirusulam, further south near Pallavaram to which, passenger operations were shifted. The new domestic terminal was commissioned in 1985 and the international terminal was commissioned in 1989. The old terminal building is now used as a cargo terminal and is the base for the Indian courier company Blue Dart.[15] On 23 September 1999, a centre for flowers, fruits and vegetables was commissioned at the cargo terminal. The new international departure terminal was commissioned in 2003.
In 2001, Chennai Airport became the first international airport in the country to receive ISO 9001-2000 certification In 2008, the AAI started major modernisation of the airport.
Administration[edit]
Chennai airport is the regional headquarters of the Airports Authority of India for the southern region of India comprising the states of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Kerala and the union territories of Puducherry and Lakshadweep. It functions from the ATS Complex within the airport and has 49 airports under its control, including 19 operational AAI airports, 5 operational private/joint venture airports, 5 non-operational airports, 12 military airports, and 8 disused airfields. These include 6 international airports, 15 domestic airports, and 3 customs airports.
Chennai airport is the centre of the southern flight information region (FIR), one of the four FIRs that the Indian air space is divided into. The regional executive director (RED) is responsible for the air traffic services over the Chennai FIR and airport management on ground at the airports in South India. The Chennai FIR includes terrestrial air space above the four southern states and two southern union territories and the oceanic air space of the southern part of the Bay of Bengal and the eastern part of the Arabian Sea. Coordination with the neighbouring national FIRs of Kolkata and Mumbai and with the neighbouring international FIRs of Sri Lanka, Kuala Lampur, and Yangon for air traffic control purposes are being made with telecommunication links (both voice and data).
The immigration services at the airport and the Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO), which is the office of the field officers in charge of immigration and registration activities in the city located at Shastri Bhavan at Haddows Road, are handled by the Bureau of Immigration.
New Domestic Terminal
Spread over an area of 1,283 acres (519 ha),[23] Chennai International Airport consists of three terminals: The old terminal at Meenambakkam is used for cargo, while the new passenger terminal complex at Tirusulam is used for passenger operations. The passenger terminal complex consists of the domestic and international terminals interconnected by a link building, which houses administrative offices and a restaurant. Although the complex is one continuous structure, it was built incrementally, with the Kamaraj and Anna terminals being added in 1988 to the pre-existing Meenambakkam terminal.
The first part to be built was the international terminal which had two aerobridges (jetways), followed by the domestic terminal with three aerobridges. After the completion of the domestic terminal, the old terminal at Meenambakkam was used exclusively for cargo. Recently the international terminal was extended further south by adding a new block which includes three aerobridges. At present, the new international block is used for departures while the older building is used for arrivals.
The international and the domestic terminals cover an area of 1.5 km2 and 1.8 km2, respectively. The airport is divided into two circles, with five zones each, for administrative conveniences.[24] Around 550 acres of the airport premises fall within the St. Thomas Mount and Pallavaram Cantonment Board's limits. The rest of the area comes under the Meenambakkam town panchayat's jurisdiction.[25] The Kamaraj (domestic) terminal has an area of 19,250 m2 (207,200 sq ft) with 48 check-in counters and handles 4.74 million passengers a year[citation needed]. The Anna (International) terminal has an area of 42,870 m2 (461,400 sq ft) with 45 check-in counters, 38 immigration counters, including 16 at the departure terminal and 22 at the arrival terminal, and 18 customs counter, including 2 at the departure terminal and 16 at the arrival terminal.
There are four entry gates at the airport, two each at both the terminals. There are 5 x-ray baggage facilities at the domestic terminal, including 3 provided by the AAI and one each by Air India and Jet Airways. X-ray baggage facility at the international terminal include 2 provided by the AAI.[27] The total area of retail space at the existing domestic and international terminals is 3,250 sq m, comprising 60 concessions including duty-free, retail shops, restaurants, snack bars and executive lounges.[28] The Anna international terminal has 6 boarding gates on the first floor. The Kamraj domestic terminal has a total of 9 boarding gates, including 6 on the ground floor and 3 on the first floor.
The airport currently has 70 parking bays, one of which can accommodate the superjumbo Airbus A380.Parking bays at the domestic terminal include one in-contact bay for Airbus A300-sized aircraft, nine in-contact bays for Airbus A320/Boeing 737-sized aircraft, and 49 remote bays for A320/737-sized aircraft. Parking bays at the international terminal include seven in-contact bays for Boeing 747-sized aircraft, 13 remote bays for 747-sized aircraft, one remote bay for an A380 aircraft, and three cargo bays for 747-sized aircraft.[26] Works on the 24 new night parking bays had been completed in the apron area. With the new parking bays, the Chennai airport would have 81 parking bays.[29] Chennai airport is the first airport in India to have aerobridges at the domestic terminal.
The Air Cargo Complex at the Chennai airport was established in 1978, when all regulatory and facilitating agencies were brought under one roof for faster processing/clearance of international cargo, to cater for air cargo movement in the southern region. At the cargo terminal, AAI functions as ground handling agency for airlines for handling or processing their cargo on ground and acts as custodian on behalf of customs import/export cargo under the customs act of 1962. Spread over an area of 19.5 acres, the complex uses cargo-handling equipments such as elevated transfer vehicle, forklifts, high-mast stackers, and power hydraulic pallet trucks for handling cargo.The covered area of the export wing of the complex is 20,595 sq m while that of the import wing is 20,090 sq m. The existing covered area of cargo terminal in occupation of AAI is 37,085 sq m. There are three ETV buildup/working stations and 18 manual buildup ETV loading positions at the complex
The cargo complex consists of two divisions, namely, the export and the import facilities. The export facility covers an area of 16,366 sq m and the import facility covers 16,500 sq m.[31] The complex has an exclusive cargo apron which can accommodate three wide-bodied aircraft with ULD parking area and hydrant-refueling facility at the bay.[30] The Customs department has appointed AAI and AI as the custodian at the complex. The import cargo of all the airlines is solely handled by AAI. The export cargo, on the other hand, is handled by AAI in respect of airlines handled by it while those of the rest of the airlines are handled by AI.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete