Karnataka govt seeks more flight operations for regional airports

Bengaluru: The Karnataka government on Tuesday asked airlines to increase flight operations at six regional airports, including a possible Bengaluru-Vidyanagar-Goa route to boost tourist arrivals at Hampi.

Infrastructure Development Minister M B Patil and IT/BT Minister Priyank Kharge held a meeting with IndiGo, Star Air, Air India, Akasa Air, Alliance Air and Spice Jet.

They discussed the status of airports at Kalaburagi, Mysuru, Bidar, Hubballi, Belagavi and Vidyanagar (Jindal). The upcoming Vijayapura airport was also discussed.

The Kalaburagi airport, the ministers said, is not being utilised to its maximum profit potential. Flights from Bengaluru to Kalaburagi are running only three days a week. This must increase, they said, adding that more cities in the state must be connected. Airlines have responded positively to this, according to a statement from Patil's office.

Priyank said the regional airports can also be used as Maintenance, Repair, Overhaul (MRO) centres. "The MRO facility is expensive in the bigger cities. We may even consider a waiver of the parking fees," Priyank said, adding that MRO facility can be started at Kalaburagi where he is the minister in charge.

It was also noted that Star Air and Alliance Air have stopped flight operations at the Kalaburagi airport for the past three years. "Kalaburagi is a tourist hub. It'll be profitable to run flights to Pune, Tirupati, Chennai and Mumbai. Airlines can start some routes on a pilot basis to see how it works," the ministers said.

Patil and Priyank pushed for more flights from the Mysuru airport to Goa, Kochi and Hyderabad. At the Belagavi airport, there are 44 flights being offered currently. There are demands to start a Belagavi-Pune flight. Airlines can offer flights to Chennai, Kochi and other destinations, they said.

From the Vidyanagar (Jindal) airport, only two flights run to Hyderabad. Patil asked airlines to start flights from Vidyanagar to Bengaluru. They pointed out that the Jindal township has foreigners and the Unesco World Heritage site of Hampi is nearby. So, a Bengaluru-Vidyanagar-Goa route can be considered, he said.

According to Patil, the Vijayapura airport is ready for inauguration while environmental clearance from the union government is pending.

Star Air will resume the Bidar-Bengaluru flight service from April 15, Patil said.

During the meeting, Patil asked officials to write to the union government on upgrading Belagavi and Hubballi airports to international standards.