Hellenikon Air Base Cyprus (1975), Ethiopia (1977), and Iran (1979, 1981). The American base was renamed Hellenikon Air Base on 25 February 1976, and also provided administrative and logistical support to U.S. units and organizations in Greece, the Middle East, Eastern Mediterranean, and parts of Africa. With the end of the Cold War, it was agreed to end the USAF presence at the airport and the United States closed its facilities in 1993. In 1963, the Finnish star architect Eero Saarinen designed the East Terminal building. Prior to closing its passenger service, the airport was serving 12 million passengers per year. Hellenikon Air
Chennai International Airport near Pallavaram to which, passenger operations were shifted. The new domestic terminal was commissioned in 1985 and the international terminal was commissioned in 1989. The old terminal building is now used as a cargo terminal and is the base for the Indian courier company Blue Dart. On 23 September 1999, a centre for flowers, fruits and vegetables was commissioned at the cargo terminal. The new international departure terminal was commissioned in 2003. In 2001, Chennai Airport became the first international airport in the country to receive ISO 9001-2000 certification. During the early days, Madras Airport was one of the largest