Regular commercial flight operations to the Sindhudurg district of Maharashtra will start soon.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu will jointly inaugurate the newly constructed terminal building and associated works of Chipi Airport in Sindhudurg on Tuesday.

Flight operations from the airport (under UDAN scheme) will commence very soon.

Routes connecting Sindhudurg to Pune, Mumbai and Nashik have already been approved under UDAN 3.1 and bids from airlines have been invited, officials said.

"The Konkan region has a long and beautiful coastline blessed with picturesque white sandy beaches. The region is not only blessed with rich natural beauty but also has an ancient temple and historical forts. With the airport coming up in the region, air connectivity to areas of Northern Karnataka, western Maharashtra and parts of Goa will improve," they said.

It will also boost tourism in the region and bode well for the economic development of the region.

The total cost of the project is about Rs 520 crore. The newly constructed Terminal Building has a capacity to handle 400 passengers per hour and with an annual passenger capacity of about 10 lakh.

The runway length of the airport is 2500m X 45m, which is suitable for A-320 and B737 type of aircraft operation.