Exclusive: Foreign Airlines Unlikely At Kerala’s Kannur Airport As Centre Withholds Point Of Call Status

A view of Kannur International Airport in Kerala. Photo: Special Arrangement

Kannur(Kerala)/New Delhi: The Union government has clarified that Kannur International Airport will not be designated as a new Point of Call for foreign airlines at present, even though the Kerala government has formally sought such a status to enable international carriers to operate from the airport.

Responding to an unstarred question in the Rajya Sabha on December 8, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol explained the criteria and current policy framework governing the grant of Point of Call (PoC) status to airports.

“Grant of point of call (PoC) to the designated carriers of foreign countries is a continuous process and is done through bilateral agreements on air services signed between India and foreign countries from time to time. The grant of PoC to the designated carriers of foreign countries depends on factors which include benefits to the Indian aviation sector, presence of Indian diaspora in that country, future plans of Indian carriers, elements of reciprocity, balance of benefits and other relevant factors between two countries,” the Minister said.

Request from the Kerala government:

In response to whether the Centre had received a request from the Kerala government, the Minister confirmed: “Yes. The Government has received requests from the State Government of Kerala for granting ‘point of call’ status to Kannur International Airport.”

However, the government ruled out any immediate plan to grant PoC status to Kannur or other non-metro airports. “At present, the Government of India promotes more international operations by Indian carriers from non-metro points either directly or through their own domestic operations. Accordingly, non-metro points, including Kannur, are not being granted as new points of call in the Air Services Agreements to any foreign country,” the Minister stated.

The reply also underlined that international connectivity from Kannur would depend largely on airline decisions. “Indian Airlines are free to select whatever markets and network they wish to service and operate within the ambit of bilateral agreements. The airlines provide air services to specific places depending upon the traffic demand and commercial viability,” the Minister said, adding that the launch of international flights from any Indian airport is “purely a commercial decision of the airlines based on the availability of slots, market requirement, economic viability of the route and other associated factors.”

International traffic drives growth at Kannur Airport:

The Kannur International Airport was conceived as a transformative project for the aviation sector in north Malabar and for neighbouring Karnataka, particularly the Coorg region, also known as Kodagu. Since commencing operations in December 2018, the airport has recorded consistent growth, with passenger traffic increasing at an average of 7% annually. International operations, in particular, saw a sharper rise, growing by 14% during the last financial year.

In the 2024–25 financial year, the airport registered a total of 11,397 aircraft movements. Of these, international flights accounted for 6,781 movements, highlighting the airport’s strong overseas linkages, while domestic aircraft movements stood at 4,616. The figures show that international services continued to dominate overall traffic, even as domestic operations made a significant contribution to total aircraft movement.

Passenger traffic also reflected this trend. During 2024–25, Kannur International Airport handled 1,364,038 passengers in total. International passengers numbered 978,831, forming the majority of the airport’s footfall, while domestic passenger traffic was recorded at 385,207.

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