Shirdi Airport

Shirdi Airport
Summary
Airport type Public
Operator M.A.D.C.
Serves Shirdi, Maharashtra, India
Location Kakadi
Elevation AMSL 1,926 ft / 587 m
Coordinates 19°41′19″N 074°22′44″E / 19.68861°N 74.37889°E / 19.68861; 74.37889Coordinates: 19°41′19″N 074°22′44″E / 19.68861°N 74.37889°E / 19.68861; 74.37889
Map
Shirdi Airport
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
09/27 8,200 2,500 asphalt

Shirdi Airport (IATA: SAG, ICAO: VASD) is located at Kakadi village, about 14 km South-west of the town of Shirdi in Maharashtra, India. The airport, spread over 400 hectares, is owned by the Maharashtra Airport Development Company (MADC) and was inaugurated by President Ram Nath Kovind on 1 October 2017.[1] Communication Navigation Surveillance (CNS) and Air Traffic Control (ATC) at the airport will be managed by the Airports Authority of India (AAI).[2]

The Rs. 340 crore airport project is part of the State Government's effort to promote religious tourism at Shirdi, known for the temple of Sai Baba, among the most revered spiritual gurus in India. Around 80,000 devotees visit the temple town daily and the numbers go up to 5 lakh per day during weekends, vacations and festivals. These pilgrims access Shirdi via road, Sainagar Shirdi Railway Station and the Aurangabad Airport located 125 km from Shirdi.

History

The Ahmednagar district administration officially acquired land for the airport project on 22 December 2009.[3] The single runway was initially intended to be 60 metres wide and 2,000 metres long and the airport was expected to start operations in December 2011.[4] However, the MADC decided to extend the length of the runway to 3,200 metres to enable operations of larger aircraft and consequently the project missed its deadline.[5] Runway length now stands at 2,500 metres.[6] Plans for a terminal building costing around Rs 40 crore were abandoned due to shortage of funds and a smaller terminal costing 3- 4 crores was built instead.[6] The work was expected to be completed before the forthcoming centenary celebrations of Sai Baba's Samadhi that will draw thousands of devotees to the pilgrim town from various parts of the country as well as abroad.[7] MADC completed the construction work by February 2016 and applied to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) for an aerodrome licence to commence operation of non-scheduled flights.[8] The DGCA issued the licence on 21 September 2017 and stated that the runway of 2,500 meters is capable of handling Code 3C type aircraft such as the Airbus A320 and Boeing 737. An Alliance Air ATR-72 operated a test run from Mumbai airport, landing at Shirdi on 26 September 2017. [9]

Airlines and Destinations

AirlinesDestinations
Alliance AirHyderabad, Mumbai
SpicejetDelhi
TrujetHyderabad

Infrastructure

The airport is equipped with a runway 2,500 metres (8,200 ft) in length. The terminal covers 2,750 square metres (29,600 sq ft) and has a capacity for 500 passengers daily.[10] Currently Shirdi Airport is going through the Runway Extension from 2,500 metres (8,200 ft) in length to 3,200 metres (10,500 ft) in length to facilitate International Flights landing. Entire Project is executed by Vasishta Projects-based out of Hyderabad under the MADC (Maharashtra Airport Developmet Corporation) management's guidance.

References

  1. ↑ "Shirdi gets international airport". Deccan Herald. 1 October 2017. Retrieved 1 October 2017.
  2. ↑ "Flights to Shirdi airport likely by October". The Indian Express. 19 August 2017. Retrieved 21 August 2017.
  3. ↑ "Shirdi airport work in full swing: Official". Times of India. 2 July 2010. Retrieved 25 April 2012.
  4. ↑ "Shirdi airport to become operational by Dec 2011". Articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com. 2010-12-11. Retrieved 2018-10-02.
  5. ↑ "Shirdi airport delayed due to runway modification". Daily News & Analysis. 4 August 2010. Retrieved 25 April 2012.
  6. 1 2 "Shirdi airport not to meet Nov deadline". Indian Express. 17 October 2012. Retrieved 22 December 2012.
  7. ↑ "Shirdi Airport to be completed in 3 years: Sahay". NewKerela.com. 15 January 2012. Retrieved 25 April 2012.
  8. ↑ "Maha govt seeks aerodrome licence for Shirdi airport". Business Standard. 7 February 2016. Retrieved 9 February 2016.
  9. ↑ "First test flight from Mumbai lands at Shirdi airport in 45 minutes". Hindustan Times. 27 September 2017. Retrieved 1 October 2017.
  10. ↑ "Shirdi, India to open to commercial traffic in early 4Q17". ch-aviation. 25 September 2017. Retrieved 1 October 2017.
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