Kolhapur Airport

Kolhapur Airport
Summary
Airport type Public
Owner Airports Authority of India
Serves Kolhapur
Location Ujlaiwadi
Elevation AMSL 1,988 ft / 606 m
Coordinates 16°39′53″N 074°17′22″E / 16.66472°N 74.28944°E / 16.66472; 74.28944
Map
Kolhapur Airport
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
07/25 4,495 1,370 Asphalt

Kolhapur Airport [1](IATA: KLH, ICAO: VAKP) is an airport in Kolhapur, Maharashtra, India. It is situated at Ujlaiwadi, 9 km South-East from Kolhapur city. It is operated by the Airports Authority of India (AAI). The AAI is expanding the airport at a cost of Rs 274 Crore.[2]

History

In January 1939, Air Services of India, a private airline based out of Juhu Aerodrome,[3] (which was Mumbai's airport at that time) began air services to the princely state of Kolhapur. The service was officially inaugurated by the Maharaja of Kolhapur, Chhatrapati Rajaram Maharaj, who had shown considerable interest in the project and offered a subsidy to the company, apart from arranging for the necessary aerodrome facilities in his capital. [4]

The present Kolhapur Airport began operations in the year 1987 and was leased by the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) from Airports Authority of India (AAI) on 16 April 1997.[5] The lease expired in February 2012 and the MIDC requested the State government in May 2012 to be relieved of the responsibility of managing the airport.[6][7] The Maharashtra Government then handed over the airport to the AAI in August 2013.[8] In March 2018, the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly passed a resolution recommending the Central government to rename the airport as ‘Chhatrapati Rajaram Maharaja Airport' after the member of the erstwhile royal family of Kolhapur.[9]

Scheduled commercial operations to the airport resumed after a gap of six years with Air Deccan operating its first flight from the city to Mumbai on 22 April 2018.[10]

References

  1. ↑ "Kolhapur Airport" (PDF). Airport Authority of India. Retrieved 12 May 2018.
  2. ↑ "Maharashtra Government to pay Rs 82 cr to Airport Authority of India for Kolhapur airport expansion". Free Press Journal. 11 May 2018. Retrieved 12 May 2018.
  3. ↑ "Airlines of the world: India". Flight Global. 27 April 1939. Retrieved 21 September 2011.
  4. ↑ "New Service in India". Flight Global. 2 February 1939. Retrieved 21 September 2011.
  5. ↑ "Need for taking over of Kolhapur Airport by Airport Authority of India". XIV Lok Sabha. Retrieved 21 September 2011.
  6. ↑ "MIDC not interested in Kolhapur airport operations". Sakaal Times. 10 May 2012. Retrieved 15 May 2012.
  7. ↑ "Maha govt sanctions Rs80 crore for Kolhapur airport expansion". DNA. 5 March 2010. Retrieved 21 September 2011.
  8. ↑ "AAI planning flexible use of Kolhapur airport". The Times of India. 11 December 2013. Retrieved 30 June 2014.
  9. ↑ "Maharashtra's Kolhapur airport may be renamed as 'Chhatrapati Rajaram Maharaj Airport'". Financial Express. 26 March 2018. Retrieved 12 May 2018.
  10. ↑ "Flights to Mumbai from Kolhapur resume after six years". The Times of India. 23 April 2018. Retrieved 12 May 2018.
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