Chandigarh International Airport

Chandigarh International Airport
चंडीगढ़ विमानक्षेत्र
ਚੰਡੀਗੜ੍ਹ ਕੌਮਾਂਤਰੀ ਹਵਾਈ ਅੱਡਾ
IATA: IXC – ICAO: VICG
Summary
Airport type Military and Civil
Operator Indian Air Force/Airports Authority of India
Serves Chandigarh Tricity
Location Mohali, India
Elevation AMSL 1,012 ft / 308 m
Coordinates 30°40′24″N 076°47′19″E / 30.67333°N 76.78861°E / 30.67333; 76.78861
Map
IXC
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
11/29 9,000 2,744 Asphalt
Statistics (April 2015 - Mar 2016)
Passenger movements 1,534,058(Increase27.2%)
Aircraft movements 13,130(Increase19.7%)
Cargo tonnage 4,559(Decrease10.0%)
Source: AAI,[1]

Chandigarh International Airport (IATA: IXC, ICAO: VICG) serves the city of Chandigarh, states of Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh.[2] The Airport's new terminal building for both domestic and international flights was inaugurated on 11 September 2015, by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The airport runway is located in the Union territory of Chandigarh while the new terminal is located in Jheurheri village at SAS Nagar district of Punjab.[3] There are approximately 35 takeoffs and landings per day with flights to Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Srinagar, Bhubaneswar, Chennai, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad.

Punjab & Haryana each have 24.5% stake and the Airports Authority of India holds the rest of 51% stake in the new terminal building.[4]

As of April 2016, there were no international flights operating out of this airport.

History - Civil Air Terminal Chandigarh

Chandigarh airport had operated all it's Civil/Commercial operations from Civil enclave in the Indian Air Force Station. Indian airlines started operating flights from Chandigarh to Delhi in the 1970s. The first expansion of the airport building was in 2008.[5] The civil air terminal of Chandigarh was declared a Customs Airport on August 19, 2011 making it eligible for international flights[6]

New terminal (2015)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurating the new terminal on 11 September 2015
Plants inside the terminal
Terminal interior

This eco-friendly airport, one of its kind in India was built by Larsen and Toubro.[7] The indoors of the airport laid with plants, brings a feeling of a botanical garden.

The road leading to the airport

A new International Terminal built at village of Jheourheri in Mohali, Punjab, India.[8][9] became operational on October 19, 2015.The old domestic terminal will now be used as only a flying club. Construction of the new terminal included three link taxiways, parallel taxi track and cargo complex.. The terminal has three aero-bridges, apron for parking three in contact and ten remote parking stands for aircraft. The departures are on the first floor and arrivals on the ground floor. The first phase terminal covering 53,000 sq metre has a capacity of 1,600 passengers at a time and a parking space for 150 vehicles. The project has Punjab, Airport Authority of India and Haryana as partners.

The new terminal was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 11 September 2015 and domestic flights started operation on 19 October 2015.[10] Initially IndiGo and SpiceJet got DGCA approval for operating flights to Dubai but no firm launch dates were announced.[11]

This airport is not a greenfield airport but uses the runway of the present Indian air force base.[12]

Naming controversy

3 Jet bridges connecting Waiting Lounge directly to Flight Door. No need to use Old fashioned Stairways.

In 2009, Punjab Legislative Assembly unanimously passed a resolution naming Chandigarh International Airport as Shaheed-E-Azam Sardar Bhagat Singh International Airport after Revolutionary Freedom fighter of India, Sardar Bhagat Singh as decided during his birth centenary celebrations in 2007.[13][14] Leader of opposition of Haryana Legislative Assembly, Abhay Singh Chautala supported Punjab's claim of naming it as Shaheed-E-Azam Sardar Bhagat Singh International Airport, Mohali as the airport is situated in Jheourheri village of Mohali.[15] Indian Youth Congress started march (padyatra) for naming the Chandigarh airport after Bhagat Singh.[16] People's Party of Punjab members protested against Central and Haryana governments for not naming airport as Shaheed-E-Azam Sardar Bhagat Singh International Airport, Mohali.[17] In October 2015, Shaheed Bhagat Singh's nephews Professor Jagmohan Singh and Abhey Singh Sandhu and Aam Aadmi Party MP Dharamvir Gandhi alongside Youths from Punjab and several other states, including activists from the tricity, assembled at Tribune Chowk and demanded to change the name to Shaheed-E-Azam Sardar Bhagat Singh International Airport.[18] On 17 December 2015, Communist Party of India (Marxist) flayed the Centre and the Haryana Government for trying to name Chandigarh International Airport after RSS ideologue Mangal Sein, instead of freedom fighter Bhagat Singh as previous Hooda Government was also in support of naming it after Bhagat Singh.[19]

Public Interest Litigation for Non-operation of International Flights

On Dec 24, 2015 the Mohali Industries Association filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in the Punjab and Haryana High Court for non-operation of International Flights after an amount of Rs. 1400 crores was spent on the airport.[20][21]

Runways

The present Runway 11/29 has a length of 9000 ft.[22] The runway uses a CAT 1 ILS system.The construction of CAT ILS 3 is planned.[23] Indian Air Force owns and operates the runways.[24]

Flights to this airport have been limited to operate between 7 am to 8 pm. There have been reports in the news media that Defence Ministry has approved flight operations during night but so far the flights still operate between 7 am and 8 pm.[25]

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

AirlinesDestinations
AirAsia India Bangalore
Air India Delhi
GoAir Mumbai
IndiGo Bangalore, Delhi, Mumbai, Srinagar, Chennai
Jet Airways Chennai, Delhi, Mumbai
SpiceJet Delhi, Srinagar
VistaraDelhi, Hyderabad [26]
Chandigarh International Airport - Ready to serve Internationally now

Ground Transport

The new terminal is located 14 km from Chandigarh City center in Sector 17. Chandigarh Transport Undertaking (CTU) operates public AC bus to Sector 17.[27] Taxi service is available to Chandigarh and Mohali.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "TRAFFIC STATISTICS - DOMESTIC & INTERNATIONAL PASSENGERS" (jsp). Aai.aero. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
  2. ↑ "Demanding int’l flights, Mohali industry body moves HC". hindustantimes.com. 25 December 2015. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
  3. ↑ India (10 September 2015). "Land gone, Jheurheri villagers set up hotels near Chandigarh airport". The Indian Express. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
  4. ↑ Super User. "Chandigarh International Airport". airportchandigarh.com.
  5. ↑ "The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Main News". www.tribuneindia.com. Retrieved 2015-12-29.
  6. ↑ "The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Chandigarh Stories". www.tribuneindia.com. Retrieved 2015-12-29.
  7. ↑ "India Has a New Eco-Friendly Airport Terminal. And It Is More than Just Amazing! - The Better India". The Better India. Retrieved 2015-12-29.
  8. ↑ "CTU diverts 4 AC buses to airport in Mohali".
  9. ↑ "PM Narendra Modi inaugurates new terminal at Chandigarh airport". businesstoday.in.
  10. ↑ "PM Modi inaugrates [sic] Chandigarh International Airport". The Times of India. 11 September 2015. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
  11. ↑ "Spice and Indigo will operate Dubai flights : Chandigarh International Airport CEO". Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  12. ↑ http://www.punjabnewsline.com/content/view/11643/93/
  13. ↑ Sehgal, Manjeet (4 September 2015). "Name controversy hits Chandigarh International Airport". Mail Online. Retrieved 17 December 2015.
  14. ↑ "Punjab, Haryana government spar over Chandigarh International Airport's name".
  15. ↑ "Name row: Chautala supports Badals".
  16. ↑ "Name airport after martyr: Youth Cong".
  17. ↑ "PPP members protest over name of international airport".
  18. ↑ "Protest for naming International airport after Bhagat Singh".
  19. ↑ "CPI (M) flays Haryana CM over trying to name Chandigarh Airport after RSS ideologue".
  20. ↑ The Tribune Chandigarh, Tribune News. "Mohali Industries Assn files PIL against Centre". tribuneindia.com. Retrieved 2016-04-05.
  21. ↑ The Tribune Chandigarh, Tribune News. "Shut airport, if you can’t make it operational: HC". tribuneindia.com. Retrieved 2016-04-05.
  22. ↑ "Runways - Chandigarh Airport - VICG - IXC - Airport Guide". airportguide.com. Retrieved 2015-12-28.
  23. ↑ "Airports Authority of India". www.aai.aero. Retrieved 2015-12-28.
  24. ↑ "Chandigarh’s international airport remains a domestic one". hindustantimes.com. Retrieved 2015-12-29.
  25. ↑ "International flights allowed from Chandigarh Airport". news.biharprabha.com. IANS. 25 July 2014. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
  26. ↑ "Vistara To Operate Daily Chandigarh-Delhi Flights". Press Trust of India. Retrieved 5 April 2016.
  27. ↑ "CTU diverts 4 AC buses to airport in Mohali". tribuneindia.com. Retrieved 2015-12-28.

External links

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