Ayodhya Airport | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Summary | |||||||||||
Airport type | Public | ||||||||||
Owner | Government of India | ||||||||||
Operator | Airports Authority of India | ||||||||||
Serves | Ayodhya, Faizabad | ||||||||||
Location | Faizabad, Uttar Pradesh, India | ||||||||||
Opened | 30 December 2023 [1] | ||||||||||
Elevation AMSL | 102 m / 335 ft | ||||||||||
Coordinates | 26°44′53″N82°09′03″E / 26.7480337°N 82.1507812°E | ||||||||||
Map | |||||||||||
Runways | |||||||||||
| |||||||||||
Statistics (April 2023 – March 2024) | |||||||||||
| |||||||||||
Ayodhya Airport( IATA : AYJ, ICAO : VEAY), officially named as Maharshi Valmiki International Airport, Ayodhyadham, [6] is an international airport serving the twin cities of Ayodhya and Faizabad in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. [7] [8] The airport is located adjacent to NH-27 and NH-330 at Naaka in Faizabad. The Government of Uttar Pradesh signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Airports Authority of India (AAI) in February 2014 for the development of the airport. [9] Construction began on the airport in February 2022, and was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 30 December 2023, with flight operations beginning from 10 January 2024. [10] [11] [12] [13]
In 2021, the Government of Uttar Pradesh proposed to name of the airport after the Hindu god Rama, the protagonist of the epic Ramayana, who is believed to be born in Ayodhya. In December 2023, the name was changed after Maharishi Valmiki, the attributed author of Ramayana, to greater represent the Ramayana-based theme of the airport. [14] [15]
In 2008, the Government of Uttar Pradesh had issued formal orders allowing the landing and parking of private aircraft on the former Indian Air Force airstrip against a fee. According to the government order, any private aircraft can land by paying ₹ 500. There would be no parking charges for the first two hours, after which ₹ 200 would be charged per day. [16]
In 2012, the former Minister of Civil Aviation, Ajit Singh, announced to develop three existing airstrips at Faizabad, Moradabad and Meerut to increase regional connectivity by air and to improve connectivity, socio-economic development and tourism in the state. [17] Singh said that the Ministry of Civil Aviation had asked the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Akhilesh Yadav, to provide the Ministry with land to set up nine airports across Uttar Pradesh, and said that having more airports would generate employment and economic growth in the state. [18] In an endeavour to provide air connectivity to different parts of India, development of low-cost airports is the most important component. Instructions have been issued to the Airports Authority of India (AAI) to identify the most suitable low-cost model for development of smaller airports, and to develop airports in smaller cities based on this mode, as part of the government's UDAN Scheme. [19]
In 2013, the government approved the transfer of the airstrip at Faizabad to the AAI to be developed as a full-fledged airport, along with three others–Meerut, Moradabad and Saifai, on the instructions of the state cabinet. The government provided extra land free of cost for further expansion and for the construction of a terminal. [20] [21] [22]
In 2018, the state government under Yogi Adityanath announced the expansion of the airstrip in Faizabad. [23] The government approved to develop it as an international airport and sanctioned ₹2 billion for acquisition of land. [23] [24] Land acquisition began from November 2021 and construction began on the airport in February 2022. [10] In April 2022, the government announced that the airport would become operational before the completion of Ram Mandir in 2024. [25] The airport was completed and inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 30 December 2023, with flight operations beginning from 10 January 2024, started by IndiGo as the first commercial airline to connect Delhi and Ahmedabad as the initial destinations. [11] [12] [26]
The existing airstrip's runway was 1,500 metres (4,900 ft) long and 30 metres (98 ft) wide, which was capable enough for only nine-seater aircraft like the Dornier 228. [27] In 2018, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) had stated that an acquisition of around 284 acres (115 ha) more land could make the airport handle 200-seater Airbus A321 aircraft. [27] In response to this, in November of the same year, the Government of Uttar Pradesh decided to acquire more than 280 acres of land around the airstrip and widen the runway to allow the landing of larger aircraft. The projected runway would be 2,500 metres (8,200 ft) long and 45 metres (148 ft) wide, with a 100–150 m-wide set-off area on each side of the runway. [27] The construction would be done in two phases, with a planned third phase. The length of the runway would be 2,250 metres in the first phase, while in the second phase, its length would be increased to 3,125 metres. In the third phase, it is planned to be extended by another 625 metres, thus taking the overall length to 3,750 metres, making the airport capable of handling large aircraft like the Airbus A380. The runway is equipped with facilities to allow night landing of aircraft, such as the Instrument Landing System (ILS), Doppler Very-high frequency Omnidirectional Range (DVOR) and Distance Measuring Equipment (DME) from the first phase of the runway development only. [28] [2]
Terminal 1 is the first terminal of the airport as part of the first phase of the airport's development. It covers an area of 6,500 sq.m. and is able to accommodate 300 passengers during peak hours and handle around 1 million passengers annually. It has an apron suitable for parking of four Airbus A320 and Boeing 737 type aircraft. Within its premises, it has parking spaces for vehicles, an approach road from the nearby highway, a fuel farm, a fuel station, a fire station, an Air Traffic Control (ATC) tower and other ancillary facilities. The terminal, along with the first phase of the airport, started handling flights from 10 January 2024. [13] [26] [29]
Terminal 2 will be the second terminal of the airport as part of the second phase of the airport's development. It will cover an area of 30,000 sq.m., which will be later expanded to 50,000 sq.m., and will be able to accommodate 3,200 passengers during peak hours and over 5-7 million passengers annually. It will have eight aerobridges and an apron suitable for parking of eight Airbus A320 and Boeing 737 type aircraft, both of which will be increased to 16 as part of the planned third phase of the airport's development. Within its premises, in front of its entrance, it will have a garden for recreation of passengers as a green space and a larger parking space than Terminal 1, along with utility facilities. As of November 2023, the terminal, along with the second phase of the airport's development, is under bidding process. [29] [30] [31]
Terminal 3 will be the third terminal of the airport as part of the third and final phase of the airport's development. It will cover an area of more than 50,000 sq.m. and will be able to accommodate more passengers than terminals 1 and 2. It will have an apron suitable for parking of eight widebody aircraft like the Boeing 777 and Boeing 787 to handle international operations. Within its premises, it will have the same garden and parking spaces like Terminal 2, but, both will cover more area as compared to Terminal 2. It will also have a new Air Traffic Control (ATC) tower that will be taller and bigger than the one developed in the first phase of the airport's development, along with a bigger fire station and utility facilities. [29] [31]
In the first phase of the airport's development, the terminal has passenger facilities such as 9 check-in counters, 3 conveyor belts, two lounges to serve passengers and tactile paths to the apron. Outside the terminal, there are four parking spaces for vehicles, a service and utility area, a four-lane approach road to the NH-27 that connects to Faizabad and Ayodhya, a fire station, an Air Traffic Control (ATC) tower, a technical block, a fuel farm, will have three medium-scale hotels, four upper-scale hotels among other ancillary and technical facilities. In the second and third phases of the airport's development, further facilities will be added to make the airport at par with international standards. A medical college will also be established between terminals 2 and 3, as part of the airport's master plan created by the Airports Authority of India (AAI). [11] [29]
The airport has been designed to portray the local, as well as the state's culture and heritage, in order to make the visitors know about the spiritual, religious and historical influence the city of Ayodhya wields on the Indian society. The designs are etched as murals and wall art in Madhubani art and Pattachitra art forms, and engraved scriptures adorning in the Nagara style of temple architecture. This art depicts the symbolism of the epics of Ramayana and Mahabharata. The architectural style has been adopted also to symbolise the Ram Mandir. The "bow and arrow" mural with portraits of Rama near the terminal's entrance along with other artworks are one of the prime themes in the exterior. Built with red stone, the carved pillars from the entrance to the inside of the terminal provide an excellent mixture of the old temple architecture with modern infrastructure. The roof of the terminal, measuring 65,000 sq.ft., is supported by seven big columns, symbolising the seven kandas (books) of Ramayana. Like ancient temples, the terminal has a rectangular base with carved pillars and a shikhara on its top to symbolise a temple structure. The terminal uses clean energy to generate electricity and follows sustainable measures to dispose waste, conserve water, and hence, is an eco-friendly airport. [32]
Airlines | Destinations |
---|---|
Air India Express [33] | Bengaluru, [34] Delhi, [35] Jaipur [34] |
Akasa Air [36] | Bengaluru, Delhi |
Alliance Air | Dehradun [37] |
IndiGo [26] | Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, [38] Delhi, Hyderabad, [39] Mumbai [40] [ better source needed ] |
SpiceJet | Ahmedabad,[ citation needed ] Delhi, Mumbai [41] [42] [ better source needed ] |
Date | Details | Refs. |
---|---|---|
12 August 2020 | Nand Gopal Gupta, Minister of Civil Aviation, Government of Uttar Pradesh, said Rs 525 crore has been approved and of this Rs 300 crore have been spent so far. | [8] |
16 September 2020 | Airports Authority of India projected land requirement of 478.1 acres to Government of Uttar Pradesh for development of the airport in Phase - I. | [43] |
10 March 2021 | Airports Authority of India sanctions Rs 242 crore to develop airport and an area of around 270 acres has been made available by Government of Uttar Pradesh. | [44] |
8 April 2022 | Government of Uttar Pradesh's civil aviation department signed a lease agreement with Airports Authority of India for transfer of 317.855 acres of land. Yogi Adityanath said the remaining 86 acres land required for the airport will also be handed over soon. | [45] |
6 December 2022 | The airport's terminal is 45% and the runway is 45% completed, and is on track for completion in December 2023. | [46] |
2 December 2023 | It was announced that the airport's first phase of work would be completed by 15 December 2023. | [47] |
12 December 2023 | It was announced that Prime Minister Narendra Modi would inaugurate the airport on 30 December 2023, and commercial flights would be started by IndiGo to Delhi and Ahmedabad from 10 January 2024. | [12] [48] |
23 December 2023 | The initial schedule for this flight was to depart from Delhi at 10:00 AM and land in Ayodhya at 11:20 AM, but according to the new schedule for the inauguration day on 30 December, the flight for Ayodhya from Delhi will now take off at 9:50 AM, with the first flight landing in Ayodhya at 11:00 AM. According to the information, after the first flight on 30 December, this flight will be operational from 10 January onwards. Subsequently, there will be daily flights from Ayodhya to Delhi at the same time, and more destinations in India starting from the same month, to be operated by Air India Express and IndiGo. | [49] [50] |
30 December 2023 | The first phase of the airport was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. | [13] [1] |
A 3.2 km (2.0 mi)-long four-lane approach road connects the airport directly with the city premises through NH-27, running towards the western side to Ayodhya.
The nearest railway station from the airport is Faizabad Junction railway station, located only 6.8 km (4.2 mi) away to the north-west in Faizabad, while Ayodhya Junction railway station is located 14.8 km (9.2 mi) away to the north-east in Ayodhya.
The nearest bus station from the airport is Faizabad Bus Depot, located only 5 km (3.1 mi) away to the north-west in Faizabad, while Ayodhya Dham Central Bus Station is located 16 km (9.9 mi) away to the north-east in Ayodhya.
Prayagraj Airport, also known as Allahabad Airport, is the domestic airport serving the city of Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh, India. Located in the Bamrauli suburb of the city, it is one of the oldest airports in India. This airport is currently under joint operation of the Indian Air Force and the Airports Authority of India. It is the fifth busiest airport in Uttar Pradesh after airports at Lucknow, Varanasi, Ayodhya and Gorakhpur in terms of passenger traffic and aircraft movements.
Dehradun Airport, also known as Jolly Grant Airport, is a domestic airport serving Dehradun, the capital of Uttarakhand, India. It is located in Jauligrant, 25 km (16 mi) south of the city, 20 km (12 mi) from Rishikesh and 35 km (22 mi) from Haridwar. Commercial operations began on 30 March 2008, after the runway was extended to accommodate larger aircraft. A new terminal building was inaugurated in February 2009. The current passenger terminal was inaugurated in October 2021. The airport is the 32nd busiest airport in India, with over 1.5 million annual passengers.
Kadapa Airport is a domestic airport serving Kadapa in Andhra Pradesh, India. It is located 12 km (7.5 mi) from the city, and is spread over 669.5 acres (270.9 ha) of land. It has been upgraded at a cost of ₹ 42 crore. The upgraded airport was inaugurated on 7 June 2015 by the then Minister of Civil Aviation, Ashok Gajapathi Raju. The terminal building has a capacity to handle 100 peak hour passengers at a time and the apron can accommodate seven ATR-72 type aircraft.
Lal Bahadur Shastri Airport is an international airport serving Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India. It is located at Babatpur, 26 km (16 mi) northwest of Varanasi. Formerly known as Varanasi Airport, it was officially renamed after Lal Bahadur Shastri, the 2nd Prime Minister of India, in October 2005. It is the 20th-busiest airport in India in terms of passenger movement, and the second-busiest airport in Uttar Pradesh. The airport is awarded as the best airport in Asia-Pacific in 2020 by Airports Council International. It is the first airport in India to make announcements in Sanskrit language.
Tezu Airport is a domestic airport serving the city of Tezu and adjoining Lohit district of Arunachal Pradesh, India. It is India's easternmost airport, operated by the Airports Authority of India (AAI), which upgraded it to handle ATR-72 aircraft with no night-landing facility. Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the upgraded airport on 9 February 2019. Scheduled commercial flights commenced from 19 August 2021. currently it provides VFR operations only during day time.
Agatti Airport is a regional airport serving the union territory of Lakshadweep, India. It is located at the southern end of Agatti Island, and is the sole airstrip in the archipelago, which lies off the west coast of mainland India.
Rajmata Vijayaraje Scindia Airport, also known as Rajmata Vijayaraje Scindia Terminal, is a Domestic Airport manage and operates by Airport Authority of India serving the city of Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, India. It is located in Maharajpura, 10 km north-east of Gwalior. It is one of the four major airports in Madhya Pradesh. The airport is named after Vijaya Raje Scindia, one of the founding members of Bharatiya Janata Party, former prominent Member of Parliament and Maharani of the erstwhile Gwalior State ruled by the Scindia dynasty. It is the oldest and largest airport of Madhya Pradesh in terms of size and only airport in Central India which has two runways. It is the closest Airport to the famous Kuno National Park.
Jabalpur Airport, also known as Dumna Airport, is a domestic airport serving the city of Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, India. It is located at Dumna, 25 km (16 mi) east of the city. It is the third busiest airport in Madhya Pradesh after Devi Ahilya Bai Holkar International Airport in Indore and Raja Bhoj Airport in Bhopal in terms of both passenger and aircraft movements. The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has upgraded the airport to provide better services to the air travellers of the region.
Surat Airport is an international airport serving Surat, Southern Gujarat. It is located in Magdalla, situated 12 km (6.4 mi) from the city centre. It has a total area of 770 acres, and is the second busiest airport in Gujarat after Ahmedabad, in terms of both aircraft movements and passenger traffic. It was awarded the status of a customs airport on 9 June 2018, and the international status was approved by the cabinet on 15 December 2023.
Kanpur Airport, is a domestic airport and an Indian Air Force base that serves the city of Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh, India. It is located at Chakeri, about 17 km (11 mi) from the city centre, and operates from a new civil terminal. It provides connectivity to major tourist and historical attractions in the area such as Bithoor, Sankissa, Etawah Safari Park, Kalinjar Fort, Kalpi, National Chambal Sanctuary, Bhitargaon and Kannauj.
Chandigarh Airport, officially Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport, is a customs airport serving the union territory of Chandigarh, India. The airport is located in Jhiurheri, Punjab and shares space with the Indian Air Force. The airport caters to 17 domestic destinations and two international destinations. The airport is named after the freedom fighter Bhagat Singh. The airport is operated by CHIAL which is a joint venture company between Airports Authority of India (51%), Government of Punjab (24.5%) and Government of Haryana (24.5%).
Gorakhpur Airport is a domestic airport and an Indian Air Force base serving the city of Gorakhpur, in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. The Airports Authority of India (AAI) operates it as a civil enclave at the Air Force base. The airport is located 8 km (5.0 mi) from the city centre. The airport covers an area of 0.71 acres (0.29 ha). In June 2017, the passenger terminal was inaugurated by the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath. It is the third busiest airport in Uttar Pradesh after Lucknow International Airport and Varanasi International Airport in terms of passenger traffic and aircraft movements.
Chaudhary Charan Singh International Airport is an international airport serving Lucknow, the capital of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is located in Amausi, 14 km (8.7 mi) from the city centre, and was earlier known as ''Amausi Airport''. It is named after Chaudhary Charan Singh, the fifth Prime Minister of India. It is owned and operated by the Lucknow International Airport Limited (LIAL), a public–private consortium led by Adani Group.
Shravasti Airport is a domestic airport, which serves the city of Shravasti, Uttar Pradesh, India. It is near an important Buddhist pilgrimage site, where The Buddha is believed to have spent 24 monsoons in this city. Numerous stupas, monasteries and several temples near the archaeological site of Sahet-Mahet establish Buddha's association with Shravasti. The airport is being developed by upgrading the existing airfield, which was used only by the Government and VIPs, in three phases. It covers an area of 57 acres, and has a terminal building, an Air Traffic Control (ATC) tower, an apron for parking of two 19-seater Dornier 228 aircraft, a fire station and a runway.
Moradabad Airport is a domestic airport in the city of Moradabad, situated midway between Moradabad and Rampur on National Highway 9 in Uttar Pradesh (UP). Being 19 km (12 mi) from the Moradabad Railway Station and 15 kms from the Rampur Railway Station, it's strategically located to serve both districts. It has been developed by upgrading the existing government airstrip.
Akbarpur Airstrip is an airstrip/aerodrome located in Akbarpur, Ambedkar Nagar, Uttar Pradesh.
Ayodhya Junction railway station, officially named as Ayodhya Dham Junction railway station, is a railway station in the city of Ayodhya in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. It is located at Dharmakata, 1.5 km (0.93 mi) south-west from the city centre and 1.2 km (0.75 mi) south-east from Ram Mandir. It is one of two railway junction stations in the city; the other one is Faizabad Junction. The station falls under the Northern Railway zone of the Indian Railways. The station's code is "AY".
Donyi Polo Airport, also known as Hollongi Airport, is a domestic airport serving Itanagar, the capital city of Arunachal Pradesh, India. It is located at Hollongi, situated 14 km (8.7 mi) south from the city centre, in the Papum Pare district. It is built by the Airports Authority of India, over an area of 320 hectares. The airport is the 16th airport of Northeast India. Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for the airport on 9 February 2019. Construction was started on 15 December 2020, and was inaugurated on 19 November 2022, with flight services started by IndiGo to Kolkata and Mumbai from 28 November 2022.
Darbhanga Airport is a domestic airport and an Indian Air Force Station, serving Darbhanga, Bihar, India. It is located just at the outskirts of the city near the NH-527B and NH-57 highways, which passes through Darbhanga. The airport is operated by the Airports Authority of India (AAI). The foundation stone for the airport was laid by the then Chief Minister of Bihar, Nitish Kumar, and the then Civil Aviation Minister, Suresh Prabhu, in the presence of the State Civil Aviation Minister, Jayant Sinha, on 24 December 2018. After efforts taken by the then Civil Aviation Minister, Hardeep Singh Puri. Commercial flights started on 8 November 2020.
Deoghar Airport is a domestic airport serving Deoghar in the state of Jharkhand, India. It is situated approximately 12 kilometres (7.4 mi) from the city centre. The airport has been primarily developed to serve the region of North-Eastern part of Jharkhand and some districts of West Bengal and Bihar. It also caters millions of pilgrims of Baidyanath Temple across the country and Sammed Shikarji for Jains. It is spread over 654 acres (265 ha). The airport has a 2,500 meter long runway, capable of handling Airbus A320, A321 and Boeing 737 type of aircraft. Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of the airport on 25 May 2018, and it was opened on 12 July 2022.