Gaya: Gaya international airport, manned by trained personnel of the Airports Authority of India (AAI), remains grossly underutilised despite having state-of-the-art facilities, including two aero bridges, an open bay, spacious lounge and night landing infrastructure.
The airport is adequately equipped to handle 10 lakh passengers every year, but around 75% of the capacity remains unutilised. According to official estimates, the airport handles only about 2.5 lakh flyers, which is just 25% of its capacity.
Spread over an area of 950 acres, Gaya airport is about four times bigger in size compared to Patna airport. Jayaprakash Narayan International Airport, Patna, on the other hand, is spread over an area of around 250 acres.
A couple of years ago, the 2,286-meter-long runway was repaired at a cost of Rs 22 crore. Besides runway repair by peeling off the surface and filling it with new material, recarpeting job was also done.
As of now, a single domestic flight, AI- 433, operates on the Gaya-Varanasi-Delhi route. Some foreign airlines, including those from Myanmar, Thailand and Bhutan, conduct seasonal operation between October and March.
According to insiders, Gaya airport’s growth trajectory has been somewhat kinked. Sources said the runway had not been adequately expanded to accommodate wide body (double aisles) planes. Everywhere in the world, narrow body (single aisle) planes are being replaced by wide body planes. AAI sources said another 500 meters have to be added to the existing length of 2,286 meters of the runway to make it compatible with wide body planes.
28/01/19 Times of India
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The airport is adequately equipped to handle 10 lakh passengers every year, but around 75% of the capacity remains unutilised. According to official estimates, the airport handles only about 2.5 lakh flyers, which is just 25% of its capacity.
Spread over an area of 950 acres, Gaya airport is about four times bigger in size compared to Patna airport. Jayaprakash Narayan International Airport, Patna, on the other hand, is spread over an area of around 250 acres.
A couple of years ago, the 2,286-meter-long runway was repaired at a cost of Rs 22 crore. Besides runway repair by peeling off the surface and filling it with new material, recarpeting job was also done.
As of now, a single domestic flight, AI- 433, operates on the Gaya-Varanasi-Delhi route. Some foreign airlines, including those from Myanmar, Thailand and Bhutan, conduct seasonal operation between October and March.
According to insiders, Gaya airport’s growth trajectory has been somewhat kinked. Sources said the runway had not been adequately expanded to accommodate wide body (double aisles) planes. Everywhere in the world, narrow body (single aisle) planes are being replaced by wide body planes. AAI sources said another 500 meters have to be added to the existing length of 2,286 meters of the runway to make it compatible with wide body planes.
28/01/19 Times of India
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