Kolkata: The apron area at Kolkata airport — where aircraft are parked, loaded and unloaded, refuelled and serviced between flights — is set for a major expansion worth Rs 337 crore on the southern side of the terminal building as part of a larger plan to augment the airport’s airside capacity and prepare it to handle rising passenger traffic.The project is scheduled to be completed over the next three years and will add operational space for aircraft parking, servicing and ground handling.The expansion comes as passenger traffic at Kolkata airport has recovered to pre-pandemic levels and is continuing to grow. The airport handled around 1.1 crore passengers in the first half of 2025, nearly matching the corresponding 2019 figure, and around 2.2 crore passengers during the full year.The apron project is part of a series of capacity augmentation measures at the airport. The integrated terminal’s annual passenger-handling capacity has recently been raised from 2.6 crore to 2.8 crore. Additional passenger space has been created in the departure areas, including expanded seating and passenger facilities.The international section is also being expanded, with around 60,000 sq ft of additional space planned in the southern part of the terminal. The expansion will provide room for reorganising immigration and customs facilities and adding passenger amenities, retail and food-and-beverage outlets.“The need to expand the airside infrastructure has become more pressing with passenger numbers approaching and at times, crossing pre-pandemic levels,” a senior airport official said.AAI has also expanded the domestic departure area by 993 sqm and is adding another 300 sqm to the international departure section. Runway handling capacity has increased from 35 to 45 flights per hour with the addition of new taxiways and rapid-exit corridors.The airport’s larger redevelopment plan envisages increasing annual passenger-handling capacity to around 4.5 crore by 2032-33. The old domestic terminal is proposed to be demolished to make way for a new U-shaped international terminal with 21 aerobridges. Aircraft parking bays are planned to increase from 73 to 132.“The existing integrated terminal, which became operational in 2013 with a designed capacity of 2 crore passengers a year, is eventually expected to be used exclusively for domestic operations, with its revised capacity projected at around 3.4 crore passengers annually,” said the official.Two new taxi tracks have also facilitated wide-body aircraft operations and improved ground movement. Other major upgrades include a new ATC tower, Metro connectivity and an advanced CAT III airfield landing system.Two new taxi tracks have also facilitated wide-body aircraft operations and improved ground movement. Other major upgrades include a new ATC tower, Metro connectivity and an advanced CAT III airfield landing system.
