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Runway upgrade at Chandigarh airport: From Oct, flight operations curtailed by 6 hrs; Bangkok flight from Oct 6
A dozen flights to and from Chandigarh will be affected due to the changed timings.
From mid-October, flight operations at the Chandigarh international airport will be restricted from 7am to 4pm to carry out the runway upgrade. At present, the flights can operate between 5am and 8pm.
The airport operator — Chandigarh International Airport Limited (CHIAL) — told the Punjab and Haryana high court on Wednesday that after a meeting between the airlines and airport authorities, it has been decided to bring down the closing time from 5pm to 4pm. Earlier, the CHIAL had proposed 5pm as the closing time.
The airlines were objecting to it, claiming that it would affect their operations. The high court (HC) was also of the view that after starting international flights, the operations should not be curtailed as it would turn away new airlines.
After the hearing, assistant solicitor general Chetan Mittal said no international flight will be affected due to the curtailment in operations. As an Indigo international flight could be affected, the authorities are working on re-scheduling it, he said.
However, around a dozen flights to and from Chandigarh will be affected due to the changed timings.
HC miffed over ministry’s change in stand
The operations are to be curtailed for upgrading the existing runway, which is maintained by the Indian Air Force. The tender for the work was floated earlier this year.
During the hearing, the HC was miffed over the Union defence ministry changing its stand over sharing the land acquisition cost for expanding the runway. It asked all the parties concerned to deliberate on the matter at an inter-ministerial meeting scheduled for August 22. Various counsels had pointed out to the HC that all along the defence ministry had been maintaining that it would bear the cost of land acquisition, but suddenly a recent letter had surfaced in which the ministry had argued that since the operations were for commercial purposes, the cost should be borne by the Union ministry of civil aviation. The matter will be taken up on August 28.
Bangkok flight from October 6
The Air India has told the high court that it will start operations on the Chandigarh-Bangkok route on October 6. There will be four flights a week. The flight will reach Chandigarh at 9:20am and depart at 1:30pm. Other details are awaited. “With this flight, the city will get connectivity to Singapore, New Zealand and Australia,” said senior advocate Puneet Bali, who is appearing on behalf of Mohali Industries Association.
So far, the Chandigarh airport is connected to only two international destinations: Dubai and Sharjah.
