Vijayawada: Overseas travellers have been demanding operation of short distance international flights, particularly to the Middle East and Southeast Asian nations, including Dubai and Singapore. The flight to Dubai is a preferred option for passengers who want to travel to the West, say the US, Europe or Africa.

Similarly, if a passenger's destination is to the East, Singapore-bound flight is the best choice. At present, the Vijayawada airport is serving only domestic passengers and providing connectivity to limited destinations within the country. The passengers urged the union ministry of civil aviation to look into the issue on priority basis.

Speaking on the same, the AP Chambers of Commerce and Industry Federation (APCCIF) general secretary Potluri Bhaskar Rao said that the as of now, the Vijayawada airport is operating only one Air India flight, at 8 pm, to New Delhi.

“The airport authorities have extended the facility of international baggage check-in here itself which facilitates the overseas passengers a smooth
check-in for their international flights at New Delhi,” Mr Bhaskar Rao explained.

Now, there are only 4-5 international services from Visakhapatnam and Tirupati, he said and added that the Airports Authority of India (AAI) has expressed its willingness for customs clearances at Vijayawada airport from January.

However, depending on the interest shown by the airline operators, the AAI will further extend the facilities, according to Mr Bhaskar Rao.

In fact, it is learnt that Indigo has expressed interest to operate early morning flight services to New Delhi which facilitates the overseas passengers to choose Vijayawada as their origin point of journey to foreign countries.

The profit and loss ratio is the main concern for any airline operator, as they simply can’t afford to operate international services without market survey and cost benefit analysis.

According to the statistics available with the AAI, there are at least 350 international passengers from Vijayawada daily. “The immediate need is that airline operators should start at least bi-weekly operations to Singapore and Dubai,” Mr Bhaskar Rao added. More flights would mean rise in revenue and number of international services to the city.