Skip to content

International Airports and Trade Class 10 Notes

questionbuddy.in/cbse/class-10/social-science/lifelines-of-national-economy/airways-international-airports-and-trade

Social ScienceCBSE Class 10 · Lifelines of National Economy

Airways, International Airports and International Trade: Class 10 Geography

Updated 18 October 2026 · Fact-checked

Air travel is the quickest, most comfortable means of transport and can cross mountains, deserts, forests and oceans. Six international airports are listed for the 2026-27 map: Amritsar, Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata and Hyderabad. International trade, exports against imports, is called the economic barometer of a country, and the balance of trade is the difference between them.

Understand Airways, International Airports and International Trade

Airways. Air travel is the quickest way to move people and is seen as comfortable and a mark of status. It crosses very difficult terrain: high mountains, bleak deserts, dense forests and long stretches of ocean. In the north-east, wide rivers, broken hilly land, thick forest, regular floods and international borders make roads and rail hard to build and keep open, so flying makes the region far easier to reach. Pawanhans Helicopters Ltd. serves ONGC's offshore operations and flies to hard-to-reach places such as the north-eastern states and inner areas of Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir.

Six international airports for the map.

  • Amritsar: Raja Sansi (Sri Guru Ram Das ji) airport, in the north.
  • Delhi: Indira Gandhi airport, in the north.
  • Mumbai: Chhatrapati Shivaji airport, on the west coast.
  • Chennai: Meenambakkam airport, on the east coast.
  • Kolkata: Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose airport, in the east.
  • Hyderabad: Rajiv Gandhi airport, inland in the Deccan.

Mumbai and Chennai appear in both the port and airport lists; Kolkata appears only as an airport, since the listed port near it is Haldia. Use the airport symbol, not the port symbol.

International trade. Trade between two countries is international trade and can go by sea, air or land. No country can survive without it, because resources are tied to particular places. The progress of a country's international trade is seen as an index of its economic prosperity, so trade is called the economic barometer of a country.

Exports, imports and balance of trade. The balance of trade is the difference between exports and imports. When exports are worth more than imports it is favourable; when imports are worth more it is unfavourable. India exports gems and jewellery, chemicals and agricultural products, and imports petroleum crude, base metals, machinery and electronic items.

Link back to ports. Heavy cargo like crude oil and iron ore needs a port; fast movement of people needs an airport. The map list is a map of India's main gateways for trade and travel.

Airways, International Airports and International Trade: key facts

Six international airports
  • Amritsar
  • Delhi
  • Mumbai
  • Chennai
  • Kolkata
  • Hyderabad
Learn the names of the airports with the cities.
Balance of trade
  • Balance of trade = value of exports minus value of imports
  • positive: favourable
  • negative: unfavourable
Favourable if positive; unfavourable if negative.
Exports and imports of India
Exports: gems and jewellery, chemicals, agricultural products | Imports: petroleum crude, base metals, machinery, electronic items
From the chapter.

How to answer Airways, International Airports and International Trade questions

Map questions ask for an airport; school questions ask for advantages of airways or the meaning of balance of trade. Do the arithmetic with signs.

  1. 1Locate the airport city, then use the airport symbol.
  2. 2For airways, give speed plus terrain: mountains, deserts, forests, ocean.
  3. 3For trade, state exports and imports and subtract: exports - imports.
  4. 4A positive result is favourable; a negative result is unfavourable.
  5. 5Link the answer to the economic barometer idea when asked about the importance of trade.

Airways, International Airports and International Trade in real life

The idea, met in an everyday situation. Answer the question in your own words, then compare with the model answer. The one-line hook is what to remember.

Balance of trade

Suppose a country exports goods worth Rs 480 lakh crore in a year and imports goods worth Rs 560 lakh crore (invented figures).

Find the balance of trade and say whether it is favourable.

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
  1. Balance = exports - imports = 480 - 560.
  2. 480 - 560 = -80.
  3. Imports exceed exports, so unfavourable.

Answer: Balance of trade = 480 - 560 = -80, that is a deficit of Rs 80 lakh crore, which is unfavourable because imports are worth more than exports.

Memory hook: Exports minus imports; minus means unfavourable.

Air links to remote hills

Suppose a flooded hill district has its only road washed away for weeks.

Why would an air service help, as in the north-east?

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
  1. Air travel crosses rivers, hills, forests.
  2. Floods and broken land make roads hard to keep open.
  3. Flying keeps the district connected.

Answer: Air travel can cross difficult terrain like rivers, hills and forests and does not depend on roads or rail lines that floods can cut, so it keeps remote districts connected, as in the north-east.

Memory hook: No road? Fly.

Tricks to remember Airways, International Airports and International Trade

Short memory aids. Say each one aloud once, then use it on a question the same day.

  • A-D-M-C-K-H

    Amritsar, Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad: first letters A-D-M-C-K-H.

    Use it when: Recall the six airports.

  • Kolkata flies, Haldia sails

    Kolkata is on the airport list; Haldia is on the port list.

    Use it when: Avoid map mix-ups.

  • Barometer

    A barometer shows weather; trade shows economic health.

    Use it when: Meaning of economic barometer.

Airways, International Airports and International Trade: solved examples

Ordered from board level to HOTS. Try each one before you open the solution.

Example 1: Meenambakkam airport · 1 mark · MCQBoard level

Meenambakkam international airport is at:
(a) Mumbai
(b) Chennai
(c) Hyderabad
(d) Kolkata

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
  1. Mumbai is Chhatrapati Shivaji, Hyderabad is Rajiv Gandhi, Kolkata is Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose; Meenambakkam is Chennai (1 mark).

Answer: (b) Chennai

Example 2: Economic barometer (2 marks) · 2 marks · Very short answerBoard level

Why is international trade called the economic barometer of a country? (2 marks)

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
  1. Resources are tied to places, so no country can survive without trade (1 mark).
  2. The progress of trade is an index of its economic prosperity (1 mark).

Answer: No country can survive without trade, because resources are tied to particular places, and the progress of a country's trade indicates its economic prosperity, so trade is called its economic barometer.

Example 3: Balance of trade calculation (3 marks) · 3 marks · Short answerHarder board level

A country exports goods worth Rs 3,25,000 crore and imports goods worth Rs 2,95,000 crore in a year (invented figures). Find the balance of trade and state whether it is favourable. Then say what would change if imports rose to Rs 3,40,000 crore. (3 marks)

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
  1. Balance = 3,25,000 - 2,95,000 = 30,000 crore, positive (1 mark).
  2. Exports exceed imports, so favourable (1 mark).
  3. With imports 3,40,000: 3,25,000 - 3,40,000 = -15,000 crore, unfavourable (1 mark).

Answer: Balance = 3,25,000 - 2,95,000 = Rs 30,000 crore, favourable. If imports rose to Rs 3,40,000 crore, balance = 3,25,000 - 3,40,000 = -Rs 15,000 crore, unfavourable.

Example 4: Airways in the north-east (5 marks) · 5 marks · Long answerHarder board level

Explain why airways are especially useful for the north-eastern states and mention how helicopter services are used. (5 marks)

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
  1. Air travel is the quickest means and can cross mountains, deserts, forests and oceans (1 mark).
  2. In the north-east wide rivers, broken hilly land, thick forests and regular floods make roads and rail hard to build and keep open (2 marks).
  3. International borders add to the difficulty (1 mark).
  4. Pawanhans Helicopters flies to hard-to-reach places such as the north-east and inner areas of Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir, and serves ONGC (1 mark).

Answer: Air travel is the quickest transport and can cross difficult terrain. In the north-east, wide rivers, broken hilly land, thick forests, regular floods and international borders make roads and rail lines hard to build and keep open, so flying makes the region far easier to reach. Pawanhans Helicopters Ltd. serves ONGC's offshore operations and flies to hard-to-reach places such as the north-eastern states and inner areas of Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir.

Example 5: Airport or port? · 4 marks · Short answerHOTS / competency

A map question asks you to mark Chhatrapati Shivaji, Kolkata (Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose) and Haldia. Which belong to the airport list and which to the port list, and why is Mumbai common to both lists? (4 marks)

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
  1. Chhatrapati Shivaji (Mumbai) and Kolkata are international airports (1 mark).
  2. Haldia is a sea port, built to relieve pressure on Kolkata (1 mark).
  3. Mumbai is both the biggest port and an international airport city (1 mark).
  4. Use the airport symbol for airports and the port symbol for ports (1 mark).

Answer: Chhatrapati Shivaji (Mumbai) and Kolkata's Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose are international airports; Haldia is a sea port. Mumbai is in both lists because it is the biggest port and also an international airport city, so use the right symbol for each.

Where students lose marks in Airways, International Airports and International Trade

The slips examiners see most often, and what to write instead.

  • Mistake: Using the port symbol for an airport

    Mumbai and Chennai appear in both lists.

    Wrong working

    Anchor symbol at Chennai for Meenambakkam.

    Right working

    Airport symbol at Chennai for Meenambakkam.

    Do this: Check the question word.

    Usually costs: 1 mark.

  • Mistake: Reversing balance of trade

    Writing imports minus exports.

    Wrong working

    Balance = 295000 - 325000 = -30000, so unfavourable.

    Right working

    Balance = exports - imports = 325000 - 295000 = +30000, favourable.

    Do this: Exports first.

    Usually costs: 1 mark.

  • Mistake: Listing only 'speed' for airways

    Incomplete answer.

    Wrong working

    Airways are fast.

    Right working

    Airways are fast and cross mountains, deserts, forests and oceans.

    Do this: Speed plus terrain.

    Usually costs: 1 mark.

Exam tips

  • Only map pointing from this chapter is tested in the 2026-27 board paper.
  • Learn the six airports with their cities rather than the long official names.
  • Show the subtraction in balance of trade; mark favourable or unfavourable.

Practice questions on Airways, International Airports and International Trade

Write each answer on paper first. Open the hint only if you are stuck, and the answer only when you have finished.

  1. Q1 · 1 mark · MCQBoard level

    Raja Sansi international airport serves which city?
    (a) Amritsar
    (b) Hyderabad
    (c) Chennai
    (d) Kolkata

    Hint

    Raja Sansi.

    Answer

    (a) Amritsar

  2. Q2 · 2 marks · Very short answerBoard level

    Give two advantages of air travel. (2 marks)

    Hint

    Speed and terrain.

    Answer

    It is the quickest means of transport, and it can cross difficult terrain such as high mountains, deserts, dense forests and oceans.

  3. Q3 · 3 marks · Short answerHarder board level

    A country's exports are Rs 7,80,000 crore and imports Rs 8,15,000 crore (invented). Calculate the balance of trade and classify it. By how much must exports rise for the balance to be zero? (3 marks)

    Hint

    Exports - imports.

    Answer

    Balance = 7,80,000 - 8,15,000 = -35,000 crore, unfavourable. Exports must rise by Rs 35,000 crore to balance.

  4. Q4 · 3 marks · Map workHarder board level

    Locate and label on the outline map of India the international airports at Amritsar, Hyderabad and Chennai, using the airport symbol. (3 marks)

    Hint

    North, Deccan, east coast.

    Answer

    Amritsar in Punjab in the north, Hyderabad inland in the Deccan, Chennai on the east coast, each with the airport symbol.

  5. Q5 · 1 mark · Assertion-reasonHOTS / competency

    Assertion (A): International trade is called the economic barometer of a country.
    Reason (R): The progress of a country's trade is an index of its economic prosperity.
    (a) Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A.
    (b) Both A and R are true, but R is not the correct explanation of A.
    (c) A is true, but R is false.
    (d) A is false, but R is true.

    Hint

    Does R explain the name?

    Answer

    (a) Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A.

Test your recall

Answer in your head or on paper first, then open the card. Pulling an answer out of memory makes it stick far better than re-reading.

  1. 1.Which airport is at Chennai?Show answer

    Meenambakkam.

  2. 2.Which airport serves Delhi?Show answer

    Indira Gandhi.

  3. 3.What is balance of trade?Show answer

    The difference between exports and imports.

  4. 4.Name two imports of India.Show answer

    Any two of petroleum crude, base metals, machinery, electronic items.

Airways, International Airports and International Trade: frequently asked questions

How many international airports are on the Class 10 map list?

Six: Amritsar, Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata and Hyderabad.

What is a favourable balance of trade?

When exports are worth more than imports.

Why is trade the economic barometer?

Because its progress shows a country's economic prosperity.