Thiruvananthapuram Airport to suspend flight services for four hours on April 21

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The Thiruvananthapuram International Airport Ltd (TIAL) will suspend flight services for five hours on April 21 for the smooth continuation of the holy ‘Painkuni Arattu’ procession of Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple across the runway.

The flight services will be suspended from 4 pm to 9 pm on April 21, Sunday.

Every year, the airport has been pausing operations and rescheduling flights twice every year to enable the bi-annual centuries-old ceremonial procession of the shrine to pass through the runway.

The practice of the temple procession taking that path to reach the Shangumugham beach for the holy bath of the idols began centuries ago. The ritual continued even after the establishment of the airport in 1932.

When the airport was constructed at the particular place, the then Travancore King Sree Chithira Thirunal had made it clear that then facility would be open for the public for 363 days in a year and two days for Lord Padmanabha, the titular deity of the royal family, according to historians.

The royal era ritual has continued even after the Adani Group took over management of the airport.

The airport issues a NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) twice every year before the runway is closed during the bi-annual Alpassi festival which falls in October-November and the Painkuni festival in March-April.

With inputs from PTI

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow