 Varanasi is served by Lal <unk> Shastri International Airport , which is approximately 26 km ( 16 mi ) from the city centre in <unk> . The airport inaugurated a new terminal in 2010 , and it was granted international airport status on 4 October 2012 . Air India , Buddha Air , Jet Airways , Jet <unk> , <unk> , and <unk> operate flights from Varanasi to Delhi , <unk> , <unk> , <unk> , <unk> , Lucknow , Mumbai , Hyderabad , Bangalore , and Kolkata . Over 330 @,@ 000 passengers pass through the airport each year . 
