Despite high demand, Centre rejects Saudi’s plea to operate flights to Kerala’s Thiruvananthapuram airport

Despite soaring demand, especially during festivals, the Indian government has turned down Saudi Arabia's request to permit Point of Call (POC) status for Thiruvananthapuram International Airport. During a Parliament inquiry, Civil Aviation Minister Murlidhar Mohol confirmed receiving the Saudi Ministry of Civil Aviation's request to designate Thiruvananthapuram as a Point of Call under the existing India-Saudi Arabia Air Services Agreement.

However, the Indian government decided against granting the request. The current promotion of non-metro airports for international operations by Indian carriers, such as Air India Express, which operates seven weekly flights to Dammam, does not extend to granting new Point of Call status to foreign airlines. Saudi airlines have previously operated services to Thiruvananthapuram and Riyadh, but those were discontinued after the airports were removed from the Point of Call list.

With the rejection of the Saudi proposal, only Indian carriers will be able to operate on the route, barring mutually agreed capacity limits, even during peak festival seasons like Onam. The Centre's decision to reject the Saudi request echoes its denial of POC status to Kannur International Airport, which foreign airlines have also been unable to operate on, despite the Centre's rejection of an earlier request to designate Kannur as a 'tourist destination' under the ASEAN Open Sky Policy.