Silchar Airport
Summary
Airport typePublic/military
OwnerIndian Air Force
OperatorIndian Air Force, Airports Authority of India
ServesSilchar
LocationKumbhirgram, Silchar, Assam, India
Opened1944 (1944)
Elevation AMSL352 ft / 107 m
Coordinates24°54′47″N 092°58′43″E / 24.91306°N 92.97861°E / 24.91306; 92.97861
Map
IXS is located in Assam
IXS
IXS
Location of airport in Assam
IXS is located in India
IXS
IXS
IXS (India)
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
06/24 7,500 2,286 Asphalt
Statistics (April 2022 - March 2023)
Passengers399,006 (Increase 26.2%)
Aircraft movements3,731 (Increase 9.2%)
Cargo tonnage742 (Decrease 10.4%)
Source: AAI[1][2][3]

Silchar Airport (IATA: IXS, ICAO: VEKU) is a domestic airport serving Silchar, Assam, India.[4] It is located at Kumbhirgram, 29 km (18 mi) from the city centre. It was built by the British as RAF Station Kumbhirgram in 1944 and transferred to the Royal Indian Air Force (RIAF). It is also a civil enclave airport as it is under the control of Indian Air Force. The airport is situated on the foothills of the Barail range.

It is the fifth busiest airport of the north-east India next to Guwahati, Agartala and Imphal & Dibrugarh. Passenger traffic in Silchar Airport showed a sharp growth of 72.9% in 2017-18, and handled 366,955 passengers. While in 2018-19, the traffic growth was reported 5.4% to 386,665. As of 2018-19 data available with Airports Authority of India, Silchar Airport is the 47th busiest airport in India and the 49th busiest in respect of aircraft movement. Silchar Airport is the 43rd busiest in cargo transportation, as of 2017-18.[5]

Infrastructure

The airport's terminal handles domestic flights. It has a runway capable of handling aircraft such as the Boeing 737 and the Airbus A320. Amenities include a restaurant, handicrafts shop, ATMs, chocolates shop, and free WiFi. The runway is equipped with a precision approach path indicator (PAPI) visual aid for both sides of the runway, that enables pilots to maintain the correct approach (in the vertical plane) towards the airport. The instrument landing system (ILS) provides a direction for approaching when the aircraft tunes its receiver to the ILS frequency, it provides both lateral and vertical signals. A glide slope station which is an antenna array sited to one side of the runway touchdown zone is also available towards the runway.

Facilities

Inside the arrival lounge

Silchar Airport is situated at an elevation of 338 feet above sea level. It covers an area of 36.70 acres.

There is only one domestic terminal. It has four check-in counters along with one boarding gate to handle nearly 300 passengers at a given time, with 150 each at the arrival and the departure section. Restrooms are available for transit passengers with charges applied as per AAI rules. There are two conveyor belts available in the arrival building to support multiple aircraft at a time. Indian Oil handles the aviation fuel service department of Silchar Airport. There are a variety of options for eating and shopping on the airport premises. Shops selling local handicraft items are also there.

The airport comes under the administrative control of the Airports Authority of India. The guidelines prescribed by the Airports Authority of India are adhered to while carrying out the daily operations of Silchar Airport.

Airlines and destinations

Apron area of the airport
AirlinesDestinationsRefs.
Air IndiaKolkata[6]
Alliance Air Imphal, Kolkata [7][8]
FlyBig Guwahati [9]
IndiGo Delhi, Guwahati, Kolkata, Mumbai,[10] Shillong
Seasonal: Bangalore		[11]

Statistics

Annual passenger traffic at IXS airport. See Wikidata query.

Transport

The Assam State Transport Corporation (ASTC) operates the Volvo air-conditioned bus services to Silchar airport from Rangirkhari Point and the Inter-State Bus Terminus (ISBT). From the ISBT one can find buses to other cities of the north-eastern region.

Taxis are also available to and from the airport to Hailakandi and Karimganj.

References

  1. ↑ "Annexure III – Passenger Data" (PDF). aai.aero. Retrieved 24 April 2023.
  2. ↑ "Annexure II – Aircraft Movement Data" (PDF). aai.aero. Retrieved 24 April 2023.
  3. ↑ "Annexure IV – Freight Movement Data" (PDF). aai.aero. Retrieved 24 April 2023.
  4. ↑ "AAI Airport's | AIRPORTS AUTHORITY OF INDIA". www.aai.aero. 26 November 2022. Archived from the original on 26 November 2022. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
  5. ↑ "Traffic News for the month of March 2018: Annexure-IV" (PDF). Airports Authority of India. pp. 3–4. Archived (PDF) from the original on 1 May 2018. Retrieved 1 May 2018.
  6. ↑ "Air India timetable". Air India. Retrieved 8 November 2018.
  7. ↑ "Alliance Air Flags Off Silchar–Imphal Flight Service: 30 Passengers To Reach Destination In 35 Mins". Barak Bulletin. 25 November 2022. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
  8. ↑ "Alliance Air Flight Network". Alliance Air. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
  9. ↑ "FlyBig to commence Guwahati-Silchar service in Jun-2023". CAPA. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
  10. ↑ "Effective 2 March, IndiGo will connect Mumbai with Silchar". JetArena. 21 February 2023. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
  11. ↑ "Flight Schedule for Domestic & International Flights". IndiGo. Retrieved 25 December 2018.
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