E-Paper
13 acre defence land will be used for cargo service & airport apron
PUNE The Pune international airport, which has only 500 square feet of space for cargo services, will get more space for the same once the handover of the 13 acre defence land parcel to the Airport Authority of India (AAI) is completed
PUNE The Pune international airport, which has only 500 square feet of space for cargo services, will get more space for the same once the handover of the 13 acre defence land parcel to the Airport Authority of India (AAI) is completed. On March 7, the ministry of defence (MoD) allotted 13 acre of defence land to the AAI. The said land will be given from the BSO yard and CWE office, and it will also include a 2.5 acre land parcel that was allotted earlier.
Santosh Dhoke, director, Pune international airport, said, “We have received a letter from the MoD and now, a committee will be formed. The committee will check the inventory of the defence land which is going to be handed over so that the same type of inventory can be allotted to another land before the handover takes place.”
As the Pune international airport has only 500 square feet of space for cargo services, airport authorities had a hard time exporting vaccines due to the limited space. Dhoke said that they wished for the handover to take place at the earliest however many formalities needed to be completed so it would take time.
“The 13 acre of land will be occupied by national and international cargo and an apron will be created for the air craft. Right now, we cannot say exactly how much square feet of land we will have for cargo but expansion is a must,” said Dhoke.
In February, the MoD agreed to lease a 2.5 acre land parcel and grant working permission to begin work on the cargo terminal at Lohegaon airport. “The 2.5 acre land which was allotted earlier by the MoD will be merged with this 13 acre land. It will be a major boost for the development of Pune airport,” said Dhoke.
More international flights expected
With the government deciding to resume scheduled commercial flights, Pune international airport is expecting more flights to middle-eastern countries. “In the summer season, we are expecting more international flights,” said Dhoke.
Box:
Upcoming projects for Pune airport
Projects; expected deadline
Multilevel car parking: July 2022
New terminal building: January 2023
Cargo service: Date yet to be decided
