The passenger movement at the Shirdi airport increased to 62,585 in May which is more than the previous four months in 2022. It is expected to increase more once night landing services start, said officials.
As many as 563 flights took off in May and 44,461kg of goods were supplied via cargo operation.
The devotees of Shirdi Sai Baba temple have started coming in large numbers from Bengaluru Chennai, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad and Delhi. The airport authorities have also started flights for Tirupati from March 29 this year.
“From March the number of passengers has started to increase. We are trying to connect with more destinations as many people from other parts of the country are demanding air connectivity to make their journey easy to Shirdi Sai Baba shrine,” said official requesting anonymity.
The airport is currently operating 22 flights (11 departures and 11 arrivals) on maximum days.
A team of Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) visited the Shirdi airport to inspect the night landing facility in the last week of May.
“We are expecting a positive report from DGCA as various systems which are needed for night landing are already upgraded at the runway. The current length of the runway is increased to 3,200 metres from 2,500 metres,” said the official.
{{/usCountry}}“We are expecting a positive report from DGCA as various systems which are needed for night landing are already upgraded at the runway. The current length of the runway is increased to 3,200 metres from 2,500 metres,” said the official.
{{/usCountry}}Pax movement
Month; Passenger footfall
January; 15,794
February; 21,724
March; 49,757
April; 61,159
May; 62,585