E-Paper
Chandigarh gets direct air connectivity to Indore
No new international flight added to the summer flight schedule, which came into force on Sunday; Sharjah flight will now be operating twice a week, instead of only once earlier
Chandigarh on Sunday got direct connectivity to Indore with enforcement of the summer flight schedule at the Chandigarh International Airport.
Though no new international flight was added in the plan, the Sharjah flight by Air India Express will now be operating twice a week, instead of only once earlier. The Dubai flight will remain suspended due to low response amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
However, the number of flights has been increased from 38 to 47, of which 28 will be operated by IndiGo Airlines.
On Sunday, the maiden Indore flight by IndiGo departed at 6.35am and reached its destination at 8.35am. Later, it left Indore at 12.05pm to arrive at Chandigarh by 1.55pm. The flight will be operational through the week with the same timings.
The summer schedule features 10 flights to Delhi by various airlines and eight to Mumbai. The airport has also resumed its twice-a-week Leh flight.
“We are also adding two more new destinations from Chandigarh – Jammu and Jodhpur. The Jammu flight will start on May 1, while the launch date for the Jodhpur flight has yet to be decided,” said Ajay Bhardwaj, chief executive officer (CEO) of the airport.
No new international flights
While 24x7 operations at the airport became a reality from April 10, 2019, no new international flight has been added since.
In the past 10 months, the airport has incurred a loss of nearly ₹40 crore on various accounts amid the pandemic. Before the lockdown, the airport saw at least 12,000 passengers, both at arrivals and departures, daily. The number has since come down to around 7,000.
The airport’s main source of revenue is the aeronautical category, whereby ₹800 per passenger is charged from the airlines. For instance, a Delhi-bound flight with 80% occupancy pays about ₹65,000 to the airport. The other sources of revenue are retail shops, office spaces, vehicle parking, and advertisements, which brought in around ₹30 lakh daily before the pandemic struck.
