Kannur: Kannur international airport inaugurated on Sunday has made Kerala the only state in India to have four airports. Three other international airports in Kerala are in Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi and Kozhikode. 

Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Civil Aviation minister Suresh Prabhu on Sunday inaugurated the Kannur international airport. There are many interesting features of Kannur International Airport 

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With an area of 2,330 acres and at a cost of Rs 1,800 crore, Kannur airport can manage around 2,000 passengers at a time and can assist more than 15 lakh international passengers annually. The length of the runway is 3,050 metres.

The airport will have 24 check-in counters initially. It is reported that it could increase up to 48 as per requirement. It also hosts six aerobridges, which can also increase in number. The length of the runway will be extended to 4,000 metres.

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The airport displays not only the cultural traditions of Malabar and Kannur. Most of the mural paintings of the airport depict the heritage of Malabar and Indian dance forms, including Theyyam and Kathakali of north Kerala. 

The airport also represents cultural traditions of Kodagu in neighbouring Karnataka. Yakshagana, the traditional theatre art form of coastal Karnataka is among the artwork that are given more attention at the airport.

It is reported that the airport will benefit non-resident Keralites (NRKs), particularly the ones who are based in the Gulf region.

The new airport promotes tourism and exports, which will result in several job opportunities.