Hyderabad, Sep 20 : Hyderabad International Airport on Sunday said it has achieved the Airport Council International's Airport Health Accreditation for safe travel. Airport operator GMR said this recognition comes when passenger safety is the topmost priority of airport operators due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Hyderabad is among the first airports in the Asia Pacific region to have received this coveted accreditation. The Airport Health Accreditation (AHA) programme was launched by the ACI in July to assess the new health measures and procedures adopted by airports as a result of the pandemic. In accordance with the recommendations of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) Council's Aviation Recovery Task Force, the programme assesses procedures like cleaning and disinfection, physical distancing, staff protection, physical layout, passenger communications and passenger facilities. The ACI assessment covered the health and safety measures undertaken by the Hyderabad International Airport for passengers and staff in all the terminal areas including departures, arrivals and transfers, transportation services, food and beverage services, escalators and elevators, lounges, facilities, baggage claim area etc. The assessment also captured the initiatives that the airport took for safety and well-being of employees and stakeholders. According to the airport operator, with the growing passenger confidence, the airport is steadily seeing an increase in passenger traffic. The airport handles an average 16,000 domestic passengers and over 170 domestic air traffic movements daily. The airport also regained its 50 domestic destinations till August 31 out of 55 pre-Covid destinations. The top five destinations in terms of passenger footfall are Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru and Mumbai. "ACI Airport Health Accreditation emboldens our commitment and consistent drive towards the safety of passengers and the entire airport community. This has been a collaborative effort and we thank everyone at the airport who have put in their heart and soul throughout this period of global pandemic," GHIAL CEO Pradeep Panicker said. He said during the extraordinary times, Hyderabad Airport has been agile and adaptive to the latest government regulations and norms to ensure airport operations are running even during the lockdown, keeping essential services active with utmost level of health and hygiene for everyone with consistency and quality assurance. "We congratulate the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport for being accredited through ACI's Airport Health Accreditation programme which demonstrates that they are focused on the health and welfare of travellers, staff, and the public. Public confidence in air travel will be crucial as our industry prepares to sustain continuing operations, and the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport is leading the way by providing to passengers and employees high globally-recognized standards on health and hygiene," ACI World Director General Luis Felipe de Oliveira said. /IANS