Rajahmundry airport to get bigger, better

Minor issues being sorted out at rapid pace, says director

Big carriers like the Airbus and Boeing will soon replace the turbo props at Rajahmundry airport.

In two months from now, Airbus and Boeing carriers will land and take off from the Rajahmundry airport as runway expansion works are nearing completion and the process for obtaining permission from the departments concerned is in progress.

Construction of the 10,540-foot-long runway has already been completed along with the construction of the compound wall, black pad, parking base and overlay of the airbase.

Once operations of the big carriers are commenced, the airport will be in a position to operate more flights to existing destinations such as Hyderabad, Chennai and Bengaluru, besides opening up for new routes such as Mumbai and Delhi. There is every likelihood of operating direct flights to the United Arab Emirates soon.

“On the work front, removal of trees and poles that may obstruct the movement of big carriers is yet to be done. The trees and poles in question have already been earmarked and revenue officials are expected to complete the work by month-end,” M. Raj Kishore, Director of the Rajahmundry Airport, told The Hindu .

Process is in progress to obtain safety clearance from the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security and the obstacle limitation survey has to be taken up to obtain the clearance once the trees and poles are removed.

“Work on the domestic cargo terminal has been completed, as we are planning to launch cargo operations along with the commencement of operations of the big carriers,” he said.

Bus bays

At present, turbo props such as ATR and Q400 are able to land and take off from the airport and the major airlines doesn’t have these 72-seater small carriers. As a result, very few services are available from Rajahmundry notwithstanding the increasing demand. “The runway expansion will solve this problem too. We can expect more and more services to domestic destinations, besides commencement of international services,” Mr. Raj Kishore explains.

To connect the airport with the rest of the city, bus bays have been built in the airport and APSRTC is expected to operate shuttle services between the airport and the bus station.