Kannur International Airport has announced an ambitious aviation-hub plan, including pilot and helicopter-pilot training, simulator facilities, aircraft maintenance and further cargo development. Kerala Chief Minister V. D. Satheesan says the changes will be pursued within a year. The airport has also opened an international air-cargo complex and a 4MW solar project.
These are useful additions. They can create skilled jobs, increase airport activity and broaden a business that has relied heavily on passenger flights. But the centre of gravity is not a building. It is 'Point of Call' status.
A Point of Call is a designation under India’s bilateral air-service agreements that permits airlines from another country to operate to a particular Indian airport. Without it, a Gulf airline cannot simply decide to add Kannur to its network, however strong the demand may appear. Indian carriers remain free to fly internationally within the limits of India’s bilateral agreements, but foreign carriers are not.
That matters disproportionately in north Kerala. The region has a large Gulf diaspora and a travel market built around regular visits, family obligations, work rotations and air cargo. Supporters of the designation say roughly a quarter of Kerala’s non-resident Indians live in Kannur’s catchment area. The airport says eight foreign airlines have expressed interest, while discussions have also included possible services to Singapore and Kuala Lumpur. Interest, however, is not a route launch, and a route launch is not a durable schedule.
The Union government has previously declined to grant Kannur new Point of Call status. Its position is that India should first encourage Indian airlines to add international services from non-metro airports. The ministry has said such decisions also turn on reciprocity, benefits to Indian aviation, diaspora links and the future plans of Indian carriers.
This is the policy conflict at the heart of Kannur’s ambition. Kerala sees a market with passengers who already travel to the Gulf, often through Kochi, Kozhikode, Mangaluru or Indian and Gulf hubs. New Delhi sees bilateral air rights as a scarce negotiating asset, not merely a local connectivity tool. Both arguments have logic. The question is whether holding back foreign-airline access actually strengthens Indian carriers, or simply sends north Kerala passengers to competing airports.
Aviation hubs need more than demand. They need airlines able to schedule aircraft at useful times, enough local ground handling, immigration and customs capacity, cargo volumes, road and rail access, and a credible commercial proposition. Kannur’s domestic and Indian-carrier international services can help establish that foundation. Its planned maintenance and training facilities could also create revenue not dependent on every flight leaving full.
But calling the airport a hub should not obscure its geography. Kannur is unlikely to rival Dubai, Doha or Singapore as a global transfer point. Its more credible role is as a regional gateway, a place where north Kerala’s diaspora traffic, leisure travel, perishables and small cargo flows can connect directly to the Gulf and, selectively, to Southeast Asia.
The pilot-training proposal needs similar realism. India’s airlines have placed large aircraft orders, and their expansion will require more pilots, instructors and simulators. Yet a training centre is not created by a political announcement. It needs regulatory approval, aircraft or high-quality simulators, instructors, airspace capacity, accommodation, financing and a clear path from ab-initio training to airline employment. The danger is producing expensive licences without producing airline-ready pilots.
Point of Call status would not guarantee a flood of Gulf flights. Foreign airlines will still examine yields, airport charges, slots at their home hubs, crew utilisation and competition. But without that status, they cannot make the commercial calculation at all.
Kannur’s case is therefore straightforward. The airport does not need to become another global hub to justify investment. It needs the freedom to serve the market on its doorstep. Until the Centre decides whether foreign airlines can fly there, every other aviation-hub promise remains on the ground.