PUNE: The Lohegaon international airport in Pune, which has been shut for 12-hours daily due to the runway re-carpeting work, is all set to begin operations from today, after a gap of 20 months. The airport was partially shut from October 26, 2020 to October 25, 2021.
However, the airport will not be operational from 9 am to 11.30 am on weekdays and from 11 am to 5 pm on Saturday due to runway maintenance work. “The airport will resume 24x7 operations from December 1. However, no civil flights will operate from 0900 to 1130 hours from Monday to Friday and on Saturday no flights will operate from 1100 to 1700 hours due to runway maintenance,” said Santosh Dhoke, Pune airport director.
“The Indian Air Force will have their practice session for two-and-a-half hours; hence, we have stopped the movement of civil flights. Runway maintenance work will take place every Saturday. On Sunday, we might get full day operation or if IAF schedules practice then accordingly we will schedule flight operations,” added Dhoke.
“As per the schedule announced for Wednesday 49 flights will be operating till 11:55 pm
{{/usCountry}}“As per the schedule announced for Wednesday 49 flights will be operating till 11:55 pm
{{/usCountry}}We have announced the schedule till midnight, rest of the schedule will be announced tomorrow afternoon. Flights for new destinations have been declared but scheduling will be done in two-three days as booking takes time,” stated Dhoke.
Currently, the footfall at the Lohegaon international airport is 18,000. “This is expected to rise once we begin operations. We will get a clear picture next week. The airport is expected to have passenger rush during night hours,” added Dhoke.