DELHI- India, which recently overtook Brazil and Indonesia to become the third-largest domestic market aims to have around 300 Airports by 2047. The Airports Authority of India (AAI) is drafting a detailed plan to convert existing airstrips into airports and construct new airports in various parts of the country.
According to the AAI project, there are roughly 70 airstrips that can be converted into airports capable of handling narrowbody aircraft, which include the development of terminals, maintenance facilities, hangars, and more.
India Eyes 300 Airports by 2047
AAI revealed that 40 airstrips can accommodate small planes such as ATR-42/72, De Havilland Canada Dash 8, or other regional jets.
So the question arises, when will AAI determine where to build a new airport? For that, AAI has set some basic criteria, which some AAI officials revealed to Mint.
- The new Airport will only be constructed if existing airstrips cannot be upgraded.
- There is no civilian airport in a radius of 50 Kilometers.
As of July 2024, India has around 138 domestic and international airports in operation.
AAI draft plan is made on the projection that by 2047 the passenger traffic will increase eight times the current one in 2024. This means there are around 376 million passengers and by 2047 India will have around 3 to 3.5 billion passengers as the standard of living will improve.
The majority of this is domestic traffic with international traffic remaining around 10-12 percent. According to AAI officials, the plan is currently in the discussion stage with the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) headed by newly appointed Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu.
Note: The passengers flying within the country are counted twice. Once during departure and again during arrival. However, international passengers are counted once, either departing or arriving.
Potential Locations
Remember that AAI’s preliminary report and plan can change in the future as passenger demand fluctuates.
The airport authority has revealed some of the potential locations in the country for Airstrip upgrades. They are as follows:
- Mandvi Airstrip in Kutch, Gujarat
- Sultanpur Airstrip in Uttar Pradesh
- Baljek Airport in Tura, Meghalaya
- Chhindwara Domestic Airport in Madhya Pradesh
Now here are some of the places where can see a new greenfield airport in India:
- Car Nicobar and Minicoy in Andaman and Nicobar islands
- Kota in Rajasthan
- Kottayam in Kerala
- Parandur in Tamil Nadu
- Purandar in Maharashtra
- Puri in Odisha
The international airports are getting more lavish, but India is focused on its RCS (Regional Connectivity Scheme) and UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik) scheme. These schemes are immersed in improving the connectivity from tier 2 and 3 cities with major metro and tier 1 cities.
AAI has also assessed the China and the United States market to find out more insights on it and improve connectivity in India.
While speaking of some hurdles and changes in acquiring land and securing approvals from respective authorities. Also growing at around 10 percent annually until 2047 will be a challenging task. Subsequently, there are launch delays in newly constructed airports and terminals.
Apart from passenger terminals, the Cargo facility including dedicated terminals and hangar will also play a key role in the country’s overall aviation growth.
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