Sindhudurg Airport Explained

Sindhudurg Airport
Iata:SDW
Icao:VOSR
Type:Public
City-Served:Sindhudurg
Location:Chipi-Parule, Vengurla taluka, Sindhudurg district, Maharashtra, India
Elevation-M:62
Coordinates:16°N 73.5333°W
Pushpin Map:India Maharashtra#India
Pushpin Map Caption:Location of the airport in Maharashtra
Pushpin Label:SDW
R1-Number:09/27
R1-Length-M:2500
R1-Surface:Asphalt
Metric-Rwy:Yes
Stat1-Header:Passengers
Stat1-Data:17,618 (37.1%)
Stat-Year:April 2023 - March 2024
Stat2-Header:Aircraft movements
Stat2-Data:397 (34.9%)
Stat3-Header:Cargo tonnage
Stat3-Data:
Footnotes:Source: AAI[1] [2] [3]

Sindhudurg Airport, also known as Chipi Airport, is a domestic airport serving the city of Sindhudurg, Maharastra, India. It is located at Chipi-Parule in Vengurla taluka, located from the nearest city of Malvan and from Sindhudurg. It has scheduled commercial flights to Mumbai, Bangalore and Hyderabad.

History

IRB Infrastructure won the bid to develop the airport in 2009 for a concession period of 95 years.[4] The project received environmental clearance in March 2012.[5] Work on the airport was completed in the second half of 2013,[6] and was expected to be completed by August 2014, but had been delayed for years because of issues in acquiring private land, among others.[7] Construction was completed by the second half of 2018 and a test flight from Mumbai landed on 12 September 2018 on the occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi.[8] [9] The airport received its aerodrome licence for commencing commercial operations from the DGCA in September 2021.[10] The airport was subsequently inaugurated on 9 October 2021 and an Alliance Air ATR 72 operated the first flight to Mumbai.[11] Alliance Air was awarded the Sindhudurg-Mumbai route under the UDAN 3.1 of the central government's regional connectivity scheme.[12]

In July 2023, Fly91 was awarded routes to Hyderabad and Bengaluru under Round 5 of the UDAN scheme[13] and commenced operations in March 2024.[14]

Structure

The airport was built by IRB Sindhudurg Airport Pvt. Ltd. on a build–operate–transfer (BOT) basis for the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC).[15] The airport was initially planned with a 3170 metre long runway at a cost of Rs. 175 crores.[16] It is spread over 275 hectares and the 2500 metre runway can accommodate aircraft like the Airbus A320 and Boeing 737. The airport terminal building can handle 200 departing and 200 arriving passengers during peak hours.[8]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Annexure III – Passenger Data. aai.aero. 24 April 2024.
  2. Web site: Annexure II – Aircraft Movement Data. aai.aero. 24 April 2024.
  3. Web site: Annexure IV – Freight Movement Data. aai.aero. 24 April 2024.
  4. News: IRB Infra wins Sindhudurg airport bid. 2009-08-04. MoneyControl. 2012-07-18.
  5. News: IRB Infra's Sindhudurg airport gets environmental clearance . 30 May 2013 . CNBC-TV18. 20 March 2012.
  6. News: Sindhudurg airport to be up next year . 30 May 2013 . Daily News & Analysis. 8 May 2013.
  7. News: International flights from Sindhudurg soon. 12 September 2018 . . 23 March 2018.
  8. News: Maharashtra's Sindhudurg Airport may begin regular operations soon! First 'test flight' to land on Sep 12 . 12 September 2018 . . 8 September 2018.
  9. News: Successful test flight lands at Sindhudurg Airport . 12 September 2018 . . 8 September 2018.
  10. News: Alliance Air to start daily Mumbai-Sindhudurg flight from October 9 . 11 July 2024 . . 22 September 2021.
  11. News: First Flight between Sindhudurg and Mumbai takes off. 11 July 2024 . . 9 October 2021.
  12. News: Sindhudurg airport in Konkan region of Maharashtra starts commercial operations . 11 July 2024 . . 9 October 2021.
  13. News: Newest airline FLY91 gets routes under UDAN scheme . 11 July 2024 . . 26 July 2023.
  14. News: FLY91 starts commercial operations with maiden flight from Goa to B'luru . 11 July 2024 . . 18 March 2024.
  15. News: Work on Chipi airport takes off . https://web.archive.org/web/20130416075011/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-04-14/goa/38528391_1_ttag-chipi-airport-airport-starts-operations . dead . 2013-04-16 . 30 May 2013 . The Times of India. 14 April 2013.
  16. Web site: Development Greenfield Airport in Sindhudurg District. 2012-07-18. IRB Infra. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20120629053432/http://www.irb.co.in/airport.aspx. 29 June 2012. dmy-all.