Madurai Airport will see the launch of the first international flight to Colombo on Thursday. SpiceJet will be launching the international air connectivity.
A 50-member delegation from Tamil Nadu Chamber of Commerce and Industry will be on boardthe inaugural flight to explore ways to enhance two-way trade and investment between Tamil Nadu and Colombo.
Expressing happiness over the realisation of a long-pursued goal, the chamber, in a statement said the service would pave the way for acceleration of industrial and economic growth in the southern districts of Tamil Nadu.
It said that a few more infrastructure facilities at the airport would enable operation of jumbo jet aircrafts which would facilitate setting up car manufacturing/assembling units in the vicinity of Madurai.
Being an all-weather airport, it should be provided with night landing facility at the earliest, the chamber said. Inclusion of Madurai airport in the bi-lateral Airport Treaties with Malaysia, Singapore, UAE. and other Gulf Countries by the Union Civil Aviation Ministry at the earliest would truly establish its international status.
Its non-inclusion in such treaties was preventing airliners from those countries in introducing air service to Madurai although they are keen to operate the service, the chamber added.