Throwing open the major water bodies in State for the Civil Aviation Ministry, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Wednesday called upon Union Minister for Civil Aviation P. Ashok Gajapathi Raju and SpiceJet CMD Ajay Singh to make at least five seaplanes operational within the next two months.
Mr. Naidu, along with Mr. Raju, Mr. Singh and others, flew the Kodiak 100 seaplane (amphibious aircraft) owned by the SpiceJet and Japan’s Setouchi Holdings as part of the trial flight conducted on the Krishna river at the Punnami Ghat.
Addressing the gathering after the test flight, Union Minister Mr. Ashok said this was the second demonstration of the amphibian aircraft in the city.
“We have about 7,500 km of coastline, of which 1,000 km is along the State. We also have thousands of rivers and tanks. All these will become potential airfields. All we need to have is a jetty that costs less than ₹1 lakh and a portacabin facility (at water bodies) without compromising on the safety and security aspects, to open up such services across the country,” Mr. Ashok said.
SpiceJet had come forward to demonstrate the amphibian aircraft in the Krishna after Mumbai sea coast, he said.
“As part of taking aviation to the next level in India, I and Union Minister Nitin Gadkari had recently discussed the regulations needed for seaplane operations. He wants it to be done in three months, while Mr. Naidu wants it much earlier. We are poised to make seaplanes a reality in India and establish connectivity to areas in difficult terrains and remote places,” he added.
Framing regulations
Mr. Naidu said, “Framing regulations for seaplanes is not a big deal. The government can look into regulations in force in other countries and bring in seaplanes. Entrepreneurs like Ajay Singh are ready to invest.
“We have Krishna and Godavari rivers, long coastline, reservoirs like Yeleru, Thotapalli, Srisailam, Somasila, Kandaleru and various others in the State. We need to encourage seaplanes,” Mr. Naidu said and called upon Mr. Singh to make Andhra Pradesh a hub for its operations.
“I request Mr. Ashok to frame required regulations for seaplanes in 30 days and make them operational in 60 days,” Mr. Naidu said pointing out that SpiceJet had ordered 100 seaplanes.
“We all, including the Prime Minister, have marketed your product. We are also eager to have seaplane services here,” he told Mr. Singh.
“Seaplane operations can bring the remotest parts of India into the mainstream aviation network without high-cost airports and runways. Our seaplane service will open a whole new market for the airline and tourism industry,” Mr. Singh said.
Setouchi Holdings president and CEO Kazuyuki Okada said the Kodiaks were the perfect flying machines that could effectively connect the remote airstrips and SpiceJet would help us serve India better.
Minister D. Umamaheswara Rao, Energy, Infrastructure and Investment Principal Secretary Ajay Jain and Tourism department officials were present
A huge gathering of school children enjoyed the seaplane flights from the Punnami Ghat.
