The airport features a single asphalt runway bearing 09/27. It is 9,006 feet (2,745 m) in length, with turnarounds on both ends, and two exits to the main apron. A third, seldom-used exit leads to an isolated apron for use in emergency.
Air India Express aircraft at Varanasi Airport
Terminal
An integrated terminal serves both domestic and international flights, with a floor-area of 26,500 m². It can process 500 passengers at any given time. The terminal features 16 check-in counters with CUTE (common-user terminal equipment), 4 immigration counters that double up as emigration counters, two aero-bridges to cater to narrow-body aircraft such as Airbus A320 family and Boeing 737 family; and two baggage-claim belts. Besides an upper-level seating area for the aero-bridge gates, the terminal features a ground-level gate to reach other aircraft on the apron on foot, or via shuttle bus. The apron can simultaneously park five narrow-body aircraft. The waiting area features essential services for the passengers, besides snack stalls, a traveler's convenience store, a bookstore with a newsstand, and stores selling merchandise indigenous to Varanasi, such as Banarasi Saris; and a VIP waiting lounge.
History
The airport was granted international status by the Union Cabinet on 4 October 2012.[6]
March 2015: The solar powered aircraft Solar Impulse 2 made a pit-stop at the airport during its 2015-16 circumnavigation of the planet.[7]
June 2017: Yogi Adityanath directed the officials to submit a proposal for acquisition of 350 acres of land for the extension of the airport at Varanasi.[8]
^"Varanasi Airport renamed". Press Information Bureau, Government of India. 20 October 2005.. It acquired its position in India's major airports after more than 1.5 million passengers used the airport in 2016.
