Officials have confirmed that the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has granted the aerodrome license for Ambikapur Airport in Chhattisgarh’s Surguja district, allowing for the commencement of flight operations.
According to a spokesperson from the public relations department, Maa Mahamaya Airport in Ambikapur has been developed as a 3-C VFR category facility to enhance air services within the state.
The application for the airport’s license to commence air services was submitted to the DGCA in December 2022. Recently, the aviation regulator approved the license for Ambikapur Airport, marking it as the third licensed airport in the state, alongside Bilaspur and Jagdalpur, all operating under the regional connectivity scheme (RCS).
The license has paved the way for the operation of 72-seater flights from Ambikapur, he added. The state government has already been making efforts to start air service from Ambikapur Airport to Raipur, Bilaspur, Lucknow, Patna, and Ranchi. With the commencement of flights from Ambikapur, tourism and commercial activities in the northern region of the state will get a boost and facilitate the development of the region, the official said.
Meanwhile, the state government also signed a memorandum of understating (MoU) with the Centre-run Alliance Air to start regular commercial flight services from Bilaspur (Chhattisgarh) to Delhi and Kolkata, and Jagdalpur (Chhattisgarh) to Delhi via Jabalpur by the end of this month, he noted.
The chief minister inaugurated flight services from Bilaspur to Delhi and Kolkata on March 12, while the flight service Delhi-Jabalpur- Jagdalpur-Jabalpur-Delhi was also launched on the same day, the official said. Now, after the pact, the flight services on the three routes will be regular from the month-end, he added.
As per the MoU, the state will provide financial assistance to the airline company to compensate for the loss based on the cost revenue model in case of non-availability of passengers on the flights.
