<h2 class="blog-hed2 pb-lg-4 pb-3 text-lg-center">History Tirupati Airport</h2>
<p class="blog-para">The airport was commissioned in 1971. In 1993, the then Prime Minister of India, P. V. Narasimha Rao,laid the foundation stone for a new terminal building, runway expansion and an Air Traffic Control (ATC) tower at a cost of ₹110 million (US$1.4 million). The upgraded airport was opened for passenger traffic in 1999 by the then Prime Minister of India, Atal Bihari Vajpayee.</p>
<p class="blog-para">The airport was declared an international airport by the Government of India in June 2017. In order to meet the demands of the anticipated international traffic and international chartered flights, AAI took up expansion of the airport to make it suitable for Code-E type of aircraft. The then Vice President of India, Venkaiah Naidu, laid the foundation stone for the project on 20 February 2019. Upgrading the airport to Code E would also enable the airport to serve as a diversion airport for the two neighbouring metropolitan international airports of Bengaluru and Chennai, in case of emergencies. The existing runway is being expanded to 3,810 m (12,500 ft). A new apron to accommodate wide-bodied aircraft is built and operational.</p>
<p><img class="img-fluid p-lg-0 rounded w-100" title="History Tirupati Airport" src="../../../main/img/airport/tiru/t.webp" alt="History Tirupati Airport"></p>
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<h2 class="blog-hed2 pb-lg-4 pb-3 pt-5">Facilities Tirupati Airport</h2>
<ul class="blog-ul">
<li class="blog-li"><strong>Terminal:</strong> A new integrated terminal referred to as Garuda Terminal was constructed adjacent to the existing domestic terminal in an area of 16,500 square metres (178,000 sq ft) at a cost of ₹1.75 billion (US$22 million). It can handle 500 domestic and 200 international passengers at a time. The foundation stone was laid in October 2010 by Manmohan Singh, then Prime Minister of India. Construction began in 2012, and the terminal was inaugurated on 22 October 2015 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The new terminal has 18 check-in-counters, four immigration counters, four baggage conveyors for arrival and one for departure, three baggage claim carousels, two VIP lounges, and parking area for 250 cars.</li>
<li class="blog-li"><strong>Runway:</strong> The airport has one runway numbered 8/26 which is 2,286 m (7,500 ft). Extension work on the runway has been taken up and the current runway will be extended to 3,810 m (12,500 ft).</li>
</ul>
<p><img class="img-fluid p-lg-0 rounded w-100" title="Facilities Tirupati Airport" src="../../../main/img/airport/tiru/t1.webp" alt="Facilities Tirupati Airport"></p>