THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Flight operations at Thiruvananthapuram International Airport were suspended for five hours on Tuesday to allow the traditional Alpassi Arattu procession of the Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple to cross the runway on its way to Shangumugham Beach for a sacred sea-bathing ritual involving the temple deities.

The temporary suspension was in force from 4 pm to 9 pm, according to reports by Malayalam media outlets. The procession is an integral part of the temple’s Alpassi festival and follows a route that passes through the airport before reaching the beach on the Arabian Sea coast.

The ceremony involves taking the processional idols of Lord Padmanabhaswamy and associated deities to the seashore for the ritual bath. The procession then returns to the temple, marking the conclusion of the festival. The centuries-old practice is observed twice a year, during the Alpassi festival in October-November and the Painkuni festival in March-April.

The unusual arrangement has continued since the airport was established in 1932. The procession’s route to Shangumugham Beach existed before the airport was built, and the runway subsequently came to intersect the traditional path.

Historical accounts cited in media reports link the arrangement to the former Travancore royal family and the reign of King Sree Chithira Thirunal. The tradition has survived successive changes in airport administration and continues under the present management.

Airport authorities had advised passengers to confirm revised flight schedules with their respective airlines ahead of the temporary closure. The five-hour suspension allowed the religious procession to cross the runway without conflicting with aircraft movements.

The annual observance remains a distinctive example of how an established religious tradition continues to shape the operating schedule of an international airport.