Mangaluru International Airport sees record 2.32 million passengers in FY 2024-25
Mangaluru(PTI): Mangaluru International Airport recorded its highest-ever passenger traffic in the financial year 2024-25, handling 2.32 million passengers, officials said on Saturday.
This marks a 15.34 per cent increase over the 2.01 million passengers in 2023-24 and a 24.1 per cent rise compared to the pre-COVID-19 figures of 2019-20, according to a statement issued by the Mangaluru airport.
"Of the total passengers, 1.61 million were domestic travellers, a 14.55 per cent increase from the previous year. International passenger numbers rose by 17.15 per cent to 7.15 lakh, up from 6.10 lakh in FY 2023-24," it stated.
According to the statement, the airport also handled 16,816 air traffic movements (ATMs) in FY 2024-25, up 11.26 per cent from 15,113 in the previous year. This includes a 22.14 per cent increase in international ATMs (4,286 compared to 3,509) and an 8.94 per cent growth in domestic ATMs (12,244 compared to 11,239).
Cargo operations also saw growth. Domestic cargo handled totalled 3,864.1 metric tonne (MT), up from 3,706.02 MT in 2023-24, it said.
"International cargo operations, which began in July 2024, recorded 1,347.07 MT — comprising 1,346.27 MT of outbound and 0.79 MT of inbound cargo — by the end of the financial year," it added.
"April 2025 saw a monthly record of 2,17,893 passengers—1,43,117 domestic and 74,776 international — making it the airport's busiest month since commissioning operations on 31 October 2020. The airport also handled its highest-ever daily passenger count of 8,103 on April 12," it further said.
Compared with FY 2019-20, domestic passenger traffic in FY 2024-25 grew by 23.61 per cent and international traffic by 25.21 per cent, with total passenger numbers up 24.10 per cent, the statement added.
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14 India-bound ships in Strait of Hormuz stopped by Iran; 1 hit by bullets, 1 crosses: Sources
New Delhi (PTI): A convoy of 14 India-bound ships carrying crude oil and gas were stopped by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) by firing at two of them while they were transiting the Strait of Hormuz, leading to 13 of the vessels returning to different locations in the Persian Gulf, official sources privy to the development said.
An Indian-flag carrying ship, which was hit by bullets fired by the IRGC while crossing the Strait of Hormuz, was carrying crude oil and a window pane was broken, forcing it to stop the journey and return. The extent of damage to the second vessel was not immediately known but it also had returned.
However, another ship, which was Indian flagged and loaded with crude oil for the Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited, sailed through the Strait and is now heading towards India, the sources said.
Two Iranian gunboats approached the targeted tanker and fired at it without warning. Gunboats approached the vessel 37 kilometres northeast of Oman, causing other vessels to return without completing the crossing, the sources said.
The incident was reported in waters between the Qeshm and Larak islands, they said.
Out of the 14 India-bound vessels, seven are carrying the Indian flag, four have the Liberia flag, two are of the Marshall Islands and one of Vietnam.
Six of them are loaded with crude oil, three have LPG and four are loaded with fertilisers. Among the ships, five are bulk carriers. All 14 vessels were sailing in a row.
Thirteen of them were stopped by the Iranian Navy and were instructed to wait. Out of the 13 stranded vessels, seven vessels are drifting south of Larak Island, waiting for clearance from the Iranian Navy, the sources said.
The Indian government is understood to have been coordinating with the Iranian authorities for the safe voyage of the stranded India-bound ships, they said.
The standoff over the Strait of Hormuz reportedly escalated again on Saturday as Iran reversed its reopening of the crucial waterway and fired on ships attempting to pass. This came as the United States pressed ahead with its blockade of Iranian ports.
Confusion over the Strait, through which roughly one-fifth of the world's oil passes, threatened to deepen the energy crisis.
The ceasefire between Iran and the US is due to run out by mid-next week.
Iran's joint military command said Saturday that "control of the Strait of Hormuz has returned to its previous state ... under strict management and control of the armed forces."
It warned that it would continue to block transit through the strait as long as the US blockade of Iranian ports remained in effect.
