UDAN wings for regional links

Regional air connectivity in hitherto unconnected Tier-II, III and IV cities is in for a major boost with at least 56 airports and 31 heliports getting ready over the next 18 months, according to a senior government official. “These airports and heliports are being developed as part of the government’s efforts to provide connectivity to unserved cities and towns with the potential to offer aviation services. The Centre has set apart ₹4,500 crore to develop these,” said Usha Padhee, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation.

Speaking at the BiZAvIndia 2018 conference, in Hyderabad, she said: “All airports in India are getting choked, and it has become difficult to offer slots to airline operators. This has forced major airliners to change their business models, and take to smaller aircraft to offer services.”

Support infrastructure

The Union Aviation Ministry official, while addressing executives and representatives from the aviation industry on ‘Emerging Opportunities for Air Connectivity in India: Navigating the Future of Business and General Aviation’, said the government has come out with two rounds of the UDAN scheme, and this has triggered a huge interest to connect unserved locations in the country.

This would further improve once the support infrastructure gets better with the commissioning and upgradation of the new airports.

A few days back, the second round of UDAN scheme was announced, and another 60 potential airports have been identified.

The efforts to develop some of the airstrips unused by the India Armed Forces would also be a big driver for the growth of the civil aviation and tourism sector in the country.

The Civil Aviation Ministry is working closely with the players in the aviation sector to address some of the pending issues, and is engaged with various stakeholders, she said.

GK Chaukiyal, Executive Director, Airports Authority of India, said: “To ease up congestion in airports, we are in the process of adding about 275 parking bays under the UDAN scheme. Apart from developing airports, we are also closely engaged in developing heliports.”

“We see heliports playing a crucial role in boosting the aviation sector in the north and north-eastern regions of the country. Already there has been significant interest by helicopter operators to serve in these locations,” he said.

“About 15-16 airports in the country account for over 80 per cent of the total air traffic. The AAI is keen to push for regional connectivity by strengthening the existing infrastructure in some locations and creating new facility.

“We expect to complete the proposed project which covers all the 56 airports within 18 months,” said Chaukiyal.

Regulations

Highlighting the potential of connecting to new locations, Rohit Kapur, President, Business Aircraft Operators Association, expressed the need to further simplify regulatory environment when it comes to operating smaller aircraft and helicopters. “Earlier our concerns get addressed, the faster the sector would grow,” he said.

Responding to various requests, Padhee said that a task force has been formed to take up issues related to general aviation, and efforts would be made to address both policy and regulatory related issues.

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