Raising hopes of Puneites to fly anywhere in the world from the city soon, Union minister of state for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol said the airstrip at Lohegaon airport would be expanded in a year so that flyers can travel to anywhere in the world.
“The survey of the land required for expansion of the airstrip at Lohegaon airport was done recently after the Union Defence Ministry gave its approval. The report will be used for acquiring necessary land for the purpose. I am working towards the expansion of the airstrip in a year,” said Mohol at an interaction with The Indian Express on Friday. There are few international flights from Pune now, which include flights to Thailand and Dubai.
Mohol said the expansion of the airstrip at Lohegaon airport will enable big size aircraft to land in Pune and pave way for flights to anywhere in the world. “The new terminal at Lohegaon airport has been started with the help of the air traffic control and additional deployment of CISF. The airport will soon have more parking bays for airplanes and choppers,” Mohol said.
Meanwhile, the process to develop the proposed international airport at Purandar will be speeded up. The land acquisition for the airport will begin soon and plans are on to make the facility operational in 2029.
“The land acquisition will be done by Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation. After that, it will be decided whether the Airport Authority of India (AAI), Maharashtra Airport Development Corporation (MADC) or a private firm will develop the airport,” said Mohol.
Mohol said the Navi Mumbai airport will be the largest airport of the country after its operations for domestic flights begin in March and international flights in April.
“It is incorrect that the airlines are not ready to shift to Navi Mumbai airport from Mumbai airport. The Navi Mumbai airport is the biggest airport in the country and all airlines will use them,” said Mohol adding the air transport industry is growing at a faster pace and there will be addition of 1,000 new airplanes flying in the country.
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