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New Indian Express
25-07-2025
- Business
- New Indian Express
We'll need 217 acres of TN land to expand Puducherry airport: Centre
PUDUCHERRY: The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has prepared a comprehensive master plan for the expansion of Puducherry Airport, paving the way for the operation of larger aircraft, including the Airbus A-320, Union Minister for Civil Aviation, Rammohan Naidu, said in reply to a question raised by Puducherry Lok Sabha member V Vaithilingam. The plan includes extending the runway to 2,300 metres in length and 45 metres in width to handle larger flights, he said. As per the proposal, a total of 402 acres of additional land will be required for the expansion. Of this, 217 acres fall under the jurisdiction of Tamil Nadu, while the remaining 185 acres are located within Puducherry. The Master Plan has already been shared with the Government of Puducherry for further implementation. The runway alignment is being altered by a rotation of around 20 degrees in the master plan. This would facilitate the expansion of the present runway 1500 x 30 metres (which is capable of handling smaller aircrafts only) to get a total runway of 2,300x45 metres (suitable for operations of Airbus 321 and similar type of aircrafts). The reorientation would not require huge earth filling as required in the previous master plan and would save cost and prevent environmental issues, government sources said. Currently, Puducherry Airport offers flight services to only two destinations—Hyderabad and Bangalore. Following the repeal of the Air Corporation Act in March 1994, airlines now enjoy full freedom to expand operations, said the minister, answering another question on whether flights would be operated from Puducherry to Kochi and Shirdi. AAI is in the process of engaging a consultant for preparing a land plan schedule, which will be shared with the centre and UT for land acquisition.
The Hindu
24-07-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
AAI designs Master Plan for Puducherry Airport expansion
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has developed a Master Plan for Puducherry airport with the provision for operation of A-320 class of aircraft, Union Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu said in Parliament on Thursday (July 24, 2025). Responding to a question raised by Member of Parliament V. Vaithilingam on the status of expansion of the Puducherry airport, Mr. Naidu said that the AAI Master Plan envisaged an extended runway length of 2,300m and 45m width. The total additional land requirement will be 402 acres, out of which 217 acres are situated in Tamil Nadu and 185 acres are in Puducherry. The Master Plan has been shared with the Government of Puducherry, the Minister said. Responding to another part of the starred question, Mr. Mohan Naidu said the Puducherry airport was currently connected to Hyderabad and Bengaluru. To the MP's query on whether the Union government proposed measures for operating flights from Puducherry to Kochi and Shirdi in view of a large number of people travelling to these places, the Civil Aviation Minister said airlines were free to decide on markets/routes following the deregulation of the aviation sector in the country. 'With the repeal of Air Corporation Act in March 1994, the Indian domestic aviation has been deregulated. Airlines are free to induct capacity with any aircraft type, free to select whatever markets and network/route they wish to service, depending on their commercial and operational feasibility,' the Minister said in his reply.
