COIMBATORE AIRPORT EXPANSION PLAN
The Tamil Nadu government
has cut down the
parcel of land to be
acquired for the proposed
expansion of Coimbatore
Airport.
Airports Authority of India
had earlier demanded 848
acres for the expansion but it
was found unfeasible as the
land was in a populated area.
The government initially
reduced the land size by 170
acres to 678 acres and later to
613 acres. In the original plan
814 buildings, including two
industrial and two school
structures, faced threat of demolition.
With the change of
plan, 397 buildings, including
one industrial building and
two school buildings, will be
sparred and only 417 buildings
will now be demolished.
At present, Coimbatore Airport
is spread across 444 acres
with a 9,900 ft runway that is
proposed to be extended to
12,000 ft for landing and takeoff
of wide-bodied aircraft. The district
administration had asked
AAI to shift some of the proposed
facilities from the populated
areas to uninhabited
areas, such as, the VHF Omni
Directional Range (VOMR)
facility that was relocated.
AAI plans to complete the airport
expansion and modernisation
project within 24 months
from the date of completion of
land acquisition. As part of the
expansion, the terminal building
will come up on the other side of
the airport land, just opposite the
existing terminal building.