While commercial flights to Mysuru are yet to resume, there is a growing belief in the city’s long-term growth and potential to support the same. The authorities are positive about expanding the airport besides getting more flights.
D. Randeep, Deputy Commissioner, speaking at the CII Summit on promoting Mysuru as the first choice for startups, said one could look forward to hearing some good news on the airport in the days ahead.
Speaking to The Hindu, Mr. Randeep explained that the crux of the issue was increasing the length of the runway of the airport from 1,740 m to 2,400 m to facilitate the landing of Boeings and Airbus classes of planes.
Landlocked airport
The city airport is landlocked with NH -212 on the east and the railway line on the west. It has a lake on its southern side. The existing runway cannot be expanded without realigning the highway that has already been expanded to a four-lane road. So, a tunnel underneath the runway is being conceived for which soil testing has already been completed and the reports have been finalised, the Deputy Commissioner said.
“Experts from the Airports Authority of India are expected to visit some countries where an underpass already exists below the runway and study models before the runway is redesigned for Mysuru in consultation with IITs,” he said and added that this was a long-drawn process and could take up to a year.
Managing costs
When asked about whether the cost justified the returns, given the repeated failures of the airport to sustain itself, Mr. Randeep said the government was adopting a long-term view given the potential of Mysuru.
The Civil Aviation Ministry is focused on making these developments as the airport is well-equipped with night-landing facilities. The IOC and HP are ready to install refuelling facilities which will be an added advantage for flight operators. “We have to look at long-drawn flights like Mysuru-Mumbai via Bengaluru or Mysuru-Bengaluru-Chennai as the Mysuru-Bengaluru route with ATRs did not click,” he added.
