The first test flight to the new Sindhudurg Airport landed successfully on Wednesday morning, paving the way for regular commercial operations in future at Maharashtra’s 14th airport.
The 10-seater Falcon 2000 flew in from Chennai, carrying a Ganesha idol on board as its first passenger. Upon landing, airport operator IRB Sindhudurg Airport Ltd organised a small ceremony to celebrate the flight.
The company has constructed the airport on a design-build-finance-operate-transfer basis for the government. The airport is located near the Chipi and Parule villages in Malwan and has a 2,500-metre-long runway. Though it will function as a domestic airport, it will have facilities to handle international charter flights. The airport is equipped to handle large Boeing 737 and Airbus 320 type of aircraft as well.
An agreement to build the airport was signed in 2009. The civil aviation and environment ministries had issued necessary clearances.
Built at a cost of ₹520 crore, the airport will cater to fliers under the Udey Desh Ka Aam Nagarik (UDAN) scheme. Officials said the airport will have the capacity of handling 200 arriving and 200 departing passengers during peak hours. The State at present has three functional international airports and 13 domestic airports.
