Lal Bahadur Shastri Airport

Lal Bahadur Shastri Airport
Summary
Airport typePublic
OwnerGovernment of India
OperatorAirports Authority of India
ServesVaranasi
LocationBabatpur, Varanasi district, Uttar Pradesh, India
Elevation AMSL270 ft / 82.30 m
Coordinates25°27′08″N 082°51′34″E / 25.45222°N 82.85944°E / 25.45222; 82.85944
WebsiteVaranasi Airport
Map
VNS
Location of airport in Uttar Pradesh
VNS
VNS (India)
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
09/27 2,745 9,006 Asphalt
Statistics (April 2024 - March 2025)
Passengers4,027,810 ( 34.4%)
Aircraft movements26,687 ( 30.1%)
Cargo tonnage6,033 ( 27.8%)
Source: AAI

Lal Bahadur Shastri Airport (IATA: VNS, ICAO: VEBN) is an international airport serving Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India. It is located at Babatpur, 26 km (16 mi) northwest of Varanasi. Formerly known as Varanasi Airport, it was officially renamed after Lal Bahadur Shastri, the 2nd Prime Minister of India, in October 2005. It acquired its position in India's major airports after more than 4 million passengers used the airport in 2024-25. It is the 19th-busiest airport in India in terms of passenger movement, and the second-busiest airport in Uttar Pradesh. The airport was awarded as the best airport in Asia-Pacific in 2020 (2 to 5 million passengers per annum) by Airports Council International. It is the first airport in India to make announcements in Sanskrit language.