Take a flight from Maharashtra’s Solapur, Kolhapur and Jalgaon from September

Keshava Sharma, regional executive director of AAI, western region, confirmed that the three airports would be operational from September

Flight operations at Solapur, Kolhapur and Jalgaon are set to begin from September under Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik (UDAN) programme.

At present, Nanded is connected with Hyderabad under the same scheme (HT)

Keshava Sharma, regional executive director of AAI, western region, confirmed that the three airports would be operational from September.

At present, Nanded is connected with Hyderabad under the same scheme. While signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the Ministry of Civil Aviation, the Maharashtra government and the state-run Airports Authority of India, aviation minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju had said last year that the development work for airports at Shirdi, Nanded, Akola, Jalgaon, Solapur and Kolhapur would be sped up.

All airlines operating under this scheme will connect small towns. The flight duration will be around an hour . The tickets will not cross Rs2,500.

UDAN is a regional airport development and connectivity scheme of the government. It aims to make air travel affordable and extensive. Launched by the Ministry of Civil Aviation last year, it will implement zero airport charges and reduce service tax on air tickets for a year, and excise duty on jet fuel.