Airport expansion hits 'road'block

Two years ago, a proposal to this effect was submitted to the State government but so far there has been no positive reply to the plan.

The sources, on condition of anonymity, told Deccan Herald that the question of extending the present runway fit for operation of big aeroplanes in Mysore city did not arise. Delay in shifting of the highway would definitely hamper further development work to a great extent. The present runway is suitable only for the operation of ATR flights. “Unless the Mysore-Ooty Highway is relocated, we cannot go ahead with the Phase- II work,” sources added.

According to sources, even though the Mysore district administration has allotted a large portion of the land adjacent to the highway, the AAI cannot begin expansion of the airport owing to delay in shifting of the highway.

The Ministry of Civil Aviation and Director General of Civil Aviation have already been appraised of the current situation. Even though, specifications regarding road and rail network varies from one country to another, uniformity is maintained in case of airways, the sources stated.

So far the response to flights has been good and during Dasara the flights have flown to full capacity. The airport offers a lot of scope for  development provided the State government clears all pending files. Continued apathy on the part of State government will only propel the AAI to operate only ATR flights from Mysore airport, the sources pointed out.

Curbs

As restrictions are imposed on construction of high-rise buildings within 20 km radius of the airport, both the Mysore City Corporation and Mysore Urban Development Authority (MUDA) are forwarding all applications received by them to AAI, Chennai, which is authorised to issue No Objection Certificates (NOCs).

Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa, while inaugurating flight operation from the Mysore airport recently, had promised to clear all bottlenecks for its further expansion. However, the promise seems to remain largely unfulfilled.