The airport is managed by theAirports Authority of India and is served by two Indian and four foreign airlines, providing direct connections to five domestic and nine international locations. The airport was designated as an international airport in October 2012 and holds anISO 9001:2008 certification.[6][7] In March 2023, the airport was awarded as theBest Airport in Asia-Pacific in the under two million passengers per annum category byAirports Council International.[8]
The first flight service began in 1936 with regularairmail flights operating from 1938. It was used as anairbase by theRoyal Air Force during theSecond World War. After theIndian Independence, the airport was used for civilian operations. In the 1990s, the airport had regular commercial flights to theMiddle east and Sri Lanka. In the late 2000s, it expanded as an international hub forlow cost carriers plying toSouth East Asia. A new passenger terminal was added in 2009, and the airport was further expanded and renovated in the early 2020s with the addition of a new passenger terminal, parking bays, andAir Traffic Control tower.
The first flight landed at the airport on 23 December 1936 whenTata Sons operated an airmail service betweenMadras andColombo via Tiruchirappalli. The flight was operated by aMiles M4A Merlin aircraft (registrationVT-AHC), and was piloted by Homi Dhanjishaw Bharucha.[9] A weekly airmail operated on theBombay–Tiruchirappalli route, with various stopovers, during early 1937 which later made connection to the Colombo service at Tiruchirappalli.[10] The regular airmail service on the Madras–Colombo route began on 28 February 1938.[11] During the early years, the airfield consisted of a 600 m (2,000 ft) runway and anAir traffic control tower.[12]
During theSecond World War,RAF station Kajamalai was established at the airfield by the BritishRoyal Air Force.[13] The aircraft landed in the airfield for carrying out repairs at the nearby workshop atPonmalai.[12] The base was used from May 1942 to early 1944, with three squadrons operating out of the airfield.
It served as the headquarters of the No. 173 Wing (25 November 1942–19 October 1943) and No. 171 Wing (1 August–8 November 1943) during the war. During and after the war, the airfield was used for aircraft maintenance and calibration. It housed the Nos. 121, 101, and 138 Repair & Salvage units (1942–1945), No. 2 Civil Maintenance unit (1943–1946), No. 1580 Calibration Flight (February 1944–October 1945), No. 1583 Calibration Flight (February 1944–15 November 1945). It was also used as a center for ferry flights (April 1944–February 1946), and as a staging post (March 1945–April 1946), and personnel transit centre (September 1945–November 1945).[15]
In 1947, theCeylon government requested theIndian government permission to operate flights between Colombo and Trichinopoly in 1947.[18] The Indian government improved the airport to make it operational for commercial flights with the flight operations to Colombo beginning in February 1948.[19] On 3 December 1948,Air Ceylon inaugurated a regular weekly commercial service between Colombo andKarachi, using aDouglas DC-3 aircraft via Tiruchirappalli and Bombay.[20] In 1950, Air Ceylon operated daily flights from Colombo to Tiruchirapalli viaJaffna.[21] Two years later,Air India started operating daily flights on the Bombay-Madras-Tiruchirappalli-Colombo route, which was later transferred to theIndian airlines.[12][22]
In the late 1980s,Air Lanka operated regular weekly flights from Tiruchirappalli to Colombo. In the 1990s, Indian Airlines started operating regular international flights to theMiddle east. In the late 2000s, the airport became a hub forlow cost carriers operating toSouth East Asia. A new passenger terminal building was commissioned in 2009, and the old passenger terminal was converted to handle cargo operations.[12] The airport was categorised as acustoms airport until 4 October 2012, when it was given international status by theMinistry of Civil Aviation.[23][24] In 2012, a request was made to name the airport after scientistC. V. Raman, who was from the city.[25] Later, requests were made to rename the airport afterA. P. J. Abdul Kalam in 2015.[26]
As a part of a proposed expansion plan in the 2010s, the AAI intended to expand the airport by 210 ha (510 acres) with the extension of the runway, addition of new parking bays, and construction of a new passenger terminal and ATC complex.[27] In 2014, the airport was one of the non-metro airports selected for₹2 billion (US$24 million) development in aPublic-Private Partnershipmodel.[28] The new integrated passenger terminal was opened in 2024 and replaced the terminal built in 2009.[29]
The airport has a single 2,427 m (7,963 ft) long runway 09/27 (Northeast–Southwest orientation) equipped with CAT-IInstrument Landing System forIFR.[30] The old 1,456 m (4,777 ft) runway 15/33 was closed as part of early development, and is used as an alternate taxiway to the main apron. The re-carpeting work on the active runway 09/27 was completed during February 2020 to July 2021 at a cost of₹200 million (US$2.4 million).[31][32] In 2025, theAirports Authority of India (AAI) proposed to extend the primary runway to 3,800 m (12,500 ft) at a cost of₹2.3 billion (US$27 million).[33]
There were four taxiways designated from A to D, which connected to the main apron with seven parking stands.[30][34] The ministry of civil aviation initiated the plan to expand the apron to provide two more aircraft bays, increasing the bay count to nine.[35] The AAI has expanded the existing apron with the construction of a thirdaerobridge and ramp equipment area, measuring 2,800 m2 (30,000 sq ft) at an estimated cost of₹22.5 million (US$270,000), which became active in January 2019.[36] In December 2023, a new apron of 15,580 m2 (167,700 sq ft) area was added with ten additional parking stands (10 to 20), three parallel taxiways (E1 to E3) and four new taxiways (F to J).[34][37]
The airport has three adjacent terminals. The original passenger terminal was replaced by a new terminal in 2009, which was later replaced by a new integrated passenger terminal in 2024.[12][29] The passenger terminal, inaugurated on 21 February 2009, was built at a cost of₹800 million (US$9.5 million), and started operations from 1 June 2009.[38] The two-story terminal has a floor area of 11,777 m2 (126,770 sq ft) with a handling capacity of 490,000 passengers per annum, and peak hour capacity of 470 passengers. It was equipped with 12 check-in counters, four customs counters, 16 immigration counters, three conveyor belts, five scanners, and four security check units.[39][40]
The new integrated passenger terminal opened in 2024
Due to the increase in air traffic, it was planned to expand the existing terminal by 180 m (590 ft) on both sides, by constructing an additional 17,920 square metres (192,900 sq ft) area, which would increase the passenger handling capacity to 1,075 peak-hour passengers.[35] Later, the plan was shelved in favour of the construction of a new two-level passenger terminal at a cost of₹9.51 billion (US$110 million) in February 2019.[41] The construction started after the foundation stone was laid on 10 February 2019, with the project expected to completed on October 2021.[42] The terminal is situated on the southern side, and a four-lane elevated access road was built from theNH-336 passing besides the original terminal.[43]
The terminal was designed by a French company,Egis Group, in partnership with the British architectural firm,Pascall+Watson.[44] The construction contract was awarded to ITD Cementation in August 2018.[45] It was completed at a cost of₹11.12 billion (US$130 million) and was inaugurated on 2 January 2024.[46] The building has an area of 75,000 m2 (810,000 sq ft), with capacity to handle 4.5 million passengers annually and 3,480 passengers during peak hour. It began operations from 11 June 2024.[47] The terminal's design is inspired by the monuments of Tiruchirapalli, Tamil festivals and art forms. A replica of the southgopuram (ornate tower at the entrance ofHindu temples) of theRanganathaswamy temple, is placed along the main entrance. The roof of the terminal has been designed with elements fromDravidian architecture.[48] The terminal consists of 11 boarding gates with five aerobridges, 26 domestic and 34 international check-in counters, 60 immigration counters, 44 emigration counters, five baggage carousels, three lounges, 19 baggage scanning systems, and an associated parking splace for 1250 cars and 10 buses with electric charging bays.[49]
After the construction of a new passenger terminal in 2009, the old terminal was converted into a cargo complex at a cost of₹10 million (US$120,000).[50] The cargo complex is spread over an area of 4,000 m2 (43,000 sq ft) with the export wing occupying 2,193 m2 (23,610 sq ft) and 1,750 m2 (18,800 sq ft) demarcated for imports. It started operations on 21 November 2011 after theCentral Board of Excise and Customs approved and notified the airport as an air cargo complex.[51][52] The cargo terminal has a holding capacity of 250 metric tonnes,[53] and serves as an export hub for the central region of Tamil Nadu.[54] On 11 October 2013, a cold storage facility, with a capacity of five-metric tons, was inaugurated at the airport.[55] On 21 April 2017, an additional dedicated import cargo facility was established on a 190 m2 (2,000 sq ft) area at a cost of₹2 million (US$24,000).[56]
The Air Traffic Control (ATC) is located alongside the old terminal building.[30] As a part of the expansion project, a new ATC building and technical block were proposed to be constructed.[57] The 46 m (151 ft) tall ATC tower was planned to be constructed at a cost of₹514.9 million (US$6.1 million), with work beginning in July 2023.[58]
Air Works operates a line maintenance facility to conduct transit checks onAirbus A320 aircraft operated byScoot.[59][60]Air India Express maintains an engineering stores and maintenance facility for service and repairs of its aircraft.[61]
TheMadras Flying Club was established in 1929, and operated from the Chennai airport. In 2018, it announced plans to shift operations to Tiruchirapalli due to congestion and operational difficulties at Chennai.[62][63] It began operations at the airport on 10 January 2020, with six training aircraft. TheGovernment of Tamil Nadu allocated two acres (0.81 ha) of its land adjacent to the airport for the club to set up its operational infrastructure.[64]
The airport is located on theNational Highway 336, with government bus services connecting the airport to the central bus terminus and major railway stations in Tiruchirappalli.[80]
On 21 December 1949, anAir Ceylon flight operated by aDouglas DC-3 aircraft (named "Sunethra Devi" and registered as VP-CAT) fromColombo to Tiruchirappalli viaJaffna, crash landed at the airport. There were no fatalities but all three crew members along with one of the 21 passengers sustained injuries. The accident was caused by engine issues, and the aircraft was heavily damaged and written off.[81][82]
On 25 December 1965, a Douglas DC-3 aircraft (registered as VT-DUC) met with an accident while landing at the airport. The accident was determined as due to pilot error, and the aircraft received substantial damage with injuries to one passenger and two crew members.[83]
On 29 May 1980,Indian Airlines flight IC529, aBoeing 737-200 (registered as VT-EGD), operating fromMadras to Tiruchirappalli 122 passengers and 6 crew members, could not land at the airport and sustained damage to its left wing during ago-around. The flight returned to Madras and landed safely with the plane sustaining substantial damage.[84]
On 11 October 2024, Air India Express flight IX613, aBoeing 737-800 aircraft (registered as VT-AYB), flying from Tiruchirapalli toSharjah, suffered a hydraulic failure in its landing gear assembly. After engaging in aholding pattern over the airport for over two hours, the flight, with 141 passengers, landed safely at the airport.[88][89]
