The airport is about an hour's drive away from Kochi, and that is if there is no traffic, which is rarely. There are accidents on all Indian roads - the only one we witnessed was on that road - a tuktuk driver who now has lost his livelihood and both legs.
We were told to allow 2 hours to get there, and three hours a the airport, even though it was a domestic flight to Delhi, but because that flight will connect to our international flight back home to Vancouver.
It was overkill - we got to the airport in an hour, to find the desk wasn't open for another hour. Se we found a comfortable seat and waiting, interspersed with little walks around this gleaming space. It is not a large airport, but the more I spent time in it, and investigated its history the more my eyes opened to a truly remarkable and inspiring place.
Kochi international airport is 100% solar-powered, the first fully solar-powered airport in the world. In 2015 it won the Champion of the Earth award, the highest environmental honour bestowed by the UN. It was India's first public-private airport venture, funded by thousands of non-resident India's that saw its first flight take off in only 1999. It is now India's 4th busiest airport for international travel.
It originally generated 50,000 units of electricity a day, and has now doubled that amount, and as of 2017 it became the first airport in the world to have a solar-powered parking area as well. Kerala suffered devastating floods in 2018, and the airport was closed briefly, but is back up and running with gleaming efficiency.
We were told to allow 2 hours to get there, and three hours a the airport, even though it was a domestic flight to Delhi, but because that flight will connect to our international flight back home to Vancouver.
It was overkill - we got to the airport in an hour, to find the desk wasn't open for another hour. Se we found a comfortable seat and waiting, interspersed with little walks around this gleaming space. It is not a large airport, but the more I spent time in it, and investigated its history the more my eyes opened to a truly remarkable and inspiring place.
Kochi international airport is 100% solar-powered, the first fully solar-powered airport in the world. In 2015 it won the Champion of the Earth award, the highest environmental honour bestowed by the UN. It was India's first public-private airport venture, funded by thousands of non-resident India's that saw its first flight take off in only 1999. It is now India's 4th busiest airport for international travel.
It originally generated 50,000 units of electricity a day, and has now doubled that amount, and as of 2017 it became the first airport in the world to have a solar-powered parking area as well. Kerala suffered devastating floods in 2018, and the airport was closed briefly, but is back up and running with gleaming efficiency.
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| solar paneled car park |
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| inside the international terminal |
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| one of the cleanest, brightest gate areas of any airport we've ever been to, courtesy of solar lighting |
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