GMR Targets Indonesia in Bhogapuram Airport Route Expansion
Visakhapatnam, India (ANTARA) - GMR Airports Limited (GMR Airports), an international airport network operator, is prioritising Indonesia in developing routes from Alluri Sitarama Raju International Airport (Bhogapuram Airport) in Bhogapuram, Andhra Pradesh Province, India.
Indonesia is regarded as a strategic market for GMR Airports to strengthen connectivity between India and Southeast Asia, whilst also opening up direct flight access to a number of international destinations.
“So, our vision is that rather than having to transit through other hubs, we want to deliver direct connectivity. We want to make this airport (Bhogapuram Airport) a hub,” said SGK Kishore, Executive Director and Chief Innovation Officer of GMR Airports, in Visakhapatnam, India, on Saturday.
The development of several new routes forms part of the company’s vision to establish Bhogapuram Airport as a new aviation hub on India’s east coast.
Kishore explained that route connectivity with Indonesia is important because Bhogapuram Airport is located in India’s east coast region, which holds a strategic position for connecting India with Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and even Europe.
Given this geographical position, Kishore hopes Bhogapuram can grow into an aviation centre enabling passengers from India to reach various international destinations directly.
Beyond Indonesia, GMR Airports is also targeting Vietnam, the Philippines, and Greece as potential markets for international route development. The company is therefore currently in discussions with several domestic and international airlines, including Air India and IndiGo, to open direct passenger and cargo routes.
Bhogapuram Airport was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday local time (8 November).
The airport was built at a cost of more than 56.4 billion rupees, or approximately 591 million US dollars, by GMR Visakhapatnam International Airport Limited under a public-private partnership (PPP) scheme.
In its first phase, Bhogapuram Airport is targeted to serve up to six million passengers per year. That capacity will subsequently be expanded to more than 40 million passengers per year.
Bhogapuram Airport stands on a 2,200-acre site, or roughly 890 hectares, with an additional 500 acres set aside for future development.
The project was completed in just two years and five months, and is scheduled to begin full operations on 17 August 2026.
The airport is also equipped with an AI-enabled Airport Predictive Operations Centre (APOC), DigiYatra, self-service technology, and sustainable infrastructure.
In the long term, Bhogapuram is projected to become the main gateway for India’s east coast region.
“We have already prepared the infrastructure (for Vizag Airport). The airport is designed in a modular fashion so that facilities can be expanded as traffic grows. We also want to work with various international airlines to deliver direct flight connectivity here (to India),” Kishore added.