City

Commercial Flights To Take Off From Rourkela Airport On Dec 5!

By
OB Bureau

Rourkela: With the Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) and the Airports Authority of India (AAI) having signed an Operation and Management (O&M) agreement, the Rourkela airport is likely to begin commercial flight operations from December 5.

The AAI, on behalf of SAIL-Rourkela Steel Plant, will operate and manage the airport.

Flight operation from Rourkela assumes significance with the Steel City all set to host 20 of the 44 matches of the Men’s Hockey World Cup from January 13 to 29 next year. The global event is expected to draw a huge crowd to Rourkela during this period.

Before signing the fresh MoU for operation and management of the airport for commercial use under the RCS-UDAN scheme on October 28, the Rourkela Steel Plant (RSP) of SAIL had already applied to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) for upgrading the airport’s licence from ARC 2B to ARC 2C to allow operation of ATR-72 aircraft, sources said.

The operation of 19 seaters and the RCS-UDAN initiative had failed as such smaller aircraft were not available with the selected flight operators. Following this, the airport was upgraded with the expansion of the runway, construction of a new apron and taxiway, new terminal building and perimeter wall by the AAI at a cost of Rs 64.24 crore to make it ready for 72 seaters.

Sources further said that Alliance Air has emerged as the selected airline operator for the Rourkela-Bhubaneswar route. Talks are also underway with other airline operators for the Rourkela-Kolkata route.

According to the timeline prepared by the state government to operationalise the Rourkela airport, a dry test run of ATR 72-type aircraft by Alliance Air may take place on November 10.

In view of the mega hockey event, the Civil Aviation Ministry has requested all the scheduled airlines to favourably consider enhancing connectivity to VSS airport at Jharsuguda after Odisha expressed concern over cancellations of Spice Jet flights to Odisha from major Indian cities and urged him to enhance flight frequency/connectivity from important cities to Jharsuguda, especially during the Hockey World Cup to boost access to Rourkela.

OB Bureau

Recent Posts

2 Held For Duping Sarpanch, Lawyers By Posing As Police Officers In Odisha’s Malkangiri

Malkangiri: Two persons were arrested for allegedly duping people in Odisha’s Malkangiri district by posing…

November 27, 2024

Gautam Adani, His Nephew & Vneet Jaain Not Charged In Bribery Case: Former Attorney General Of India Defends Billionaire

New Delhi: The Adani Group on Wednesday strongly dismissed allegations of bribery and violations of…

November 27, 2024

Odisha IAS Officer Sujata Karthikeyan Joins Duty After Rejection Of Leave Extension Application

Bhubaneswar: Senior IAS officer Sujata Karthikeyan, wife of V K Pandian, joined duties on Wednesday…

November 27, 2024

4 Teams Formed To Trace Suspect In Baby Theft At VIMSAR In Odisha’s Sambalpur

Sambalpur: Four special teams have been formed to trace a woman, suspected to be involved…

November 27, 2024

Ceasefire Starts Between Israel, Hezbollah To End Fighting In Lebanon, Know The Terms Of The Truce

Jerusalem: Paving the way to end the conflict in Lebanon, Israel’s security cabinet on Tuesday…

November 27, 2024

Know Why Jagannath Temple In Odisha’s Puri Will Remain Closed For 5 Hours Today

Puri: Shree Jagannath Temple in Odisha’s Puri town will remain closed for devotees for five…

November 27, 2024

Junior Mining Officer In Odisha Vigilance Net; Raid On At 7 Places

Bhubaneswar: Odisha Vigilance sleuths on Wednesday launched simultaneous raids at seven places linked to Padmanav…

November 27, 2024

Thalassemia & Sickle Cell Patients Stage Dharna For Blood Transfusion Centre At MKCG Hospital In Odisha’s Berhampur

Berhampur: Hundreds of thalassemia and sickle cell patients on Tuesday staged a demonstration demanding a…

November 26, 2024