Alluri Sitarama Raju International Airport at Bhogapuram in Vizianagaram district, Andhra Pradesh, commenced full commercial flight operations from 00.01 hours on Monday, 17 August, marking the end of civilian aviation at Visakhapatnam Airport (INS Dega) — an institution that had served the region since 1962. The airport's international air transport code VTZ, long associated with Visakhapatnam, was simultaneously transferred to the new greenfield facility.

First Flights and Opening Moments

The first aircraft to depart the new airport was a Scoot Airlines flight bound for Singapore, which lifted off around midnight. The first domestic arrival — an IndiGo flight from Hyderabad — touched down at 6.45 am, welcomed by GMR representatives along with airport and Vizianagaram district officials. Passengers were gifted Etikoppaka toys as commemorative mementoes. The first domestic departure from the new airport took off for Hyderabad at 7.30 am, with subsequent services to Bengaluru, Delhi, and Hyderabad following through the morning.

On the inaugural day, 31 flights were scheduled from Bhogapuram, with an estimated 6,000 to 7,000 passengers expected to travel. Airlines currently operating include IndiGo, Air India Express, Air India, and Scoot Airlines, serving domestic destinations such as Hyderabad, Tirupati, Chennai, Bengaluru, Delhi, Kolkata, and Mumbai, as well as international routes to Singapore and Abu Dhabi.

An Emotional Farewell to Visakhapatnam Airport

The transition was not without sentiment. Staff at Visakhapatnam Airport bid a tearful farewell to the last commercial flight — IndiGo 6E 2018 — which departed for Delhi at 10.45 pm on Sunday. The airport, originally built during World War II and opened to civilian operations in 1962, had served as a cornerstone of Visakhapatnam's connectivity for over six decades. According to a notification issued by the Civil Aviation Ministry last month, commercial operations at the Civil Enclave will remain suspended for 30 years, except in cases of national emergency, defence operations, or VIP aircraft movements.

Infrastructure and Scale of Bhogapuram Airport

Developed and operated by GMR Visakhapatnam International Airport Limited (GVIAL) under a Public Private Partnership model, the airport was built at a cost of nearly ₹4,727 crore. It was completed in 31 months — roughly five months ahead of schedule — making it among the fastest-completed greenfield international airports in India. Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the airport on 1 August.

The facility is designed to handle six million passengers annually in its first phase, with a long-term master plan to scale capacity to 40 million passengers annually. Its integrated project footprint spans 2,703.26 acres, comprising 2,203.32 acres for the airport, 500 acres for an aviation hub, and 136.63 acres for an Aviation University and EduCity. The airside infrastructure includes a 3,800-metre Code 4E runway capable of handling wide-body aircraft including the Boeing 777, Boeing 787 Dreamliner, Airbus A330, and Airbus A340, along with a parallel taxiway, rapid-exit taxiways, and 18 aircraft stands.

Displacement of Airport Workers

The transition has come at a human cost. The shift of operations to Bhogapuram has reportedly rendered approximately 1,000 workers at Visakhapatnam Airport unemployed. Affected employees have appealed to both the state and Central governments to provide alternative employment. To ease passenger connectivity in the interim, authorities have deployed 20 electric buses on the route between Visakhapatnam and Bhogapuram Airport, approximately 45 km apart.

Economic Impact and Regional Outlook

The project is expected to catalyse economic growth across the erstwhile Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram, and Srikakulam districts, with officials projecting benefits for tourism, industrial investment, exports, logistics, and the aerospace and defence sectors. Whether the new airport delivers on that potential will depend on airline capacity additions and regional infrastructure development in the years ahead.