April 17, 1962
A dedication ceremony took place for an airport in the vicinity of Bhubaneswar, the capital city of eastern India’s state of Odisha. This airport was specifically dedicated to the people of Odisha, and it had the distinction of being the first commercial airport in the state.
The airport is named after Biju Patnaik(1916-1997), who served as chief minister of Odisha from 1961 to 1963 and again between 1990 and 1995. Throughout his long life, he stood out as a notably ardent advocate for this region of India.
Patnaik earned widespread renown as well for his accomplishments as an aviator. During World War II, for example, he undertook multiple flight missions on behalf of the Allies to evacuate civilians from Japanese-occupied areas. Patnaik also transported urgently needed supplies and logistical support to Soviet forces fighting against Germany during the strategically decisive Battle of Stalingrad.
Over the years, the international airport now bearing Patnaik’s name has received several major awards and other types of high-profile acclaim. For fiscal year 2012-13, it was formally named the best airport in India based on the Customer Satisfaction Index (CSI). Biju Patnaik Airport achieved another milestone a few years later when it received the Airport Service Quality Award for 2018 from Airports Council International (ACI). This award specifically highlighted Biju Patnaik Airport as the best airport in the Asia-Pacific region in the two-to-five-million passengers per annum category.
In 2019, Biju Patnaik Airport was a recipient of the Odisha State Energy Conservation Award. The award, which was in the Meritorious Performance – Commercial Buildings category, was given to the airport for its efforts in such initiatives as energy-efficient lighting and optimized air-conditioning systems.
In yet another acknowledgement of its focus on passengers, Biju Patnaik Airport won the ACI Voice of Customer Recognition in 2021. This award is presented to airports with a strong record of collecting passenger feedback and using those responses to enhance public outreach and support services. Biju Patnaik Airport was singled out for this recognition because of how it was addressing passengers’ concerns and needs at the height of the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic.
Biju Patnaik Airport is among India’s busiest airports. In fiscal year 2024-25 alone, this airport handled more than 4.8 million passengers and approximately 10,031 tons (9,100 metric tons) of cargo.
Photo Credit: Aditya Mahar (licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en)
For more information on Biju Patnaik Airport, please check out https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biju_Patnaik_Airport
Additional information on the busiest airports in India is available at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_busiest_airports_in_India
Transportation History 
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