Hyderabad: AS the number of Covid cases is steadily coming down across India, the confidence in travel is steadily gaining momentum. With the easing of Covid restrictions, the demand for air travel is gradually picking up across sectors. With stringent hygiene, digitalisation and safety standards in place, travellers are confident to travel by air, said GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd.

Airports are getting busier, and airlines are adding new flight routes connecting cities to new travel destinations and reviving the old ones. Hyderabad International Airport now connects to 65 domestic destinations as compared to 55 destinations in the pre-Covid period. In the last quarter new domestic sectors like Rajkot, Srinagar and Jamnagar have been added to the list.

The airport saw an increase in the number of flights across domestic sectors. The airport recorded a substantial rise in Air Traffic Movements (ATMs) in September which was close to 9,000. The passenger traffic surged in September, and the airport witnessed 62 per cent growth in traffic at 9.35 lakh domestic passengers as compared to 6.8 lakh domestic passengers in July.

The domestic passenger recovery at Hyderabad airport was the highest amongst all metro airports during July and August. It also saw a gradual increase in international travellers which was 41 per cent of the pre- Covid level at 1.2 lakh. Overall, the passenger traffic footfall (domestic and international) reached 59 per cent of the pre-Covid levels in September.

On 9th October, the airport recorded the highest (domestic and international) passenger footfall of nearly 48,350 ATMs which is 77 per cent of the pre Covid numbers. The most popular domestic destinations in terms of passenger volumes were Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru. Dubai, Doha and Sharjah were the hottest destinations among the international travellers.

Along with leisure/vacation travel, SME business travel and visiting friends and relatives (VFR), students have largely contributed to the increase in passenger numbers. The average domestic passengers travelling from Hyderabad International Airport per day rose to 31,137 in September as compared to 22,500 per day in July.

Hyderabad airport recently launched Air India's maiden direct flight from Hyderabad to London. The Air India nonstop flights operate between Hyderabad International Airport and Heathrow Airport twice a week - Monday and Friday. Also, under the Udan initiative to bolster regional connectivity, it launched Star Air's maiden flight from Hyderabad to Jamnagar.