Commercial flight operations from Birsi Airport in Gondia, the hometown and constituency of former civil aviation minister Praful Patel, have been suspended after both airlines operating from the airport halted services until further notice.
Sources said rising Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) prices are affecting air connectivity to smaller cities like Gondia. Airlines across the country have reportedly raised concerns with the government over increasing fuel costs, and aviation officials warned that more such suspensions cannot be ruled out.
Until recently, IndiGo operated flights between Gondia and Hyderabad, while Star Air connected the city with Indore. Both airlines cited “operational reasons” for discontinuing the services.
Officials said the flights were receiving good passenger response and often operated at full capacity. However, a decision on restarting services is now expected only in the next flight schedule.
Birsi Airport began operations in 2009 and primarily served the National Flying Training Institute (NFTI), a joint venture between CAE Inc. and Airports Authority of India. Commercial flight operations from the airport started only in 2023.
The Airports Authority of India is now planning to issue an open appeal to airlines, encouraging them to restart operations from Gondia. Officials highlighted that the airport has a 2,600-metre runway along with night landing and instrument landing facilities.
In Vidarbha, airports are operated by both Maharashtra Airport Development Company and the Airports Authority of India. The MADC-operated airport in Amravati currently has one flight service to Mumbai, while MIHAN India Limited, a joint venture between AAI and MADC, manages the airport in Nagpur.
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