Govt to increase airstrip of Hisar airport to 9,000 ft

CHANDIGARH: Haryana government has said it has decided to increase the existing airstrip length of Hisar airport from 4,000 ft to 9,000 ft with facilities of night landing and navigational aids. The decision was taken in a meeting of civil aviation department held under the chairmanship of chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar here on Monday.

“In a bid to develop an integrated aviation hub at Hisar over 4,200 acre land, Haryana government will also provide additional incentives to airlines over and above the commitments made in the Udan agreement,” a government spokesperson said.

The state government had earlier signed the memorandum of understanding with the Union ministry of civil aviation for starting Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS) Flights. As part of it, in the first phase, the existing Hisar airport will be upgraded and developed as a domestic airport under the regional connectivity scheme of Udan.

In the second phase, the existing airstrip was to be extended from 4,000 ft to 9,000 ft with the facilities of night landing and state-of-the-art navigational aids to facilitate airlines and operators for fixed-based operations, night landing and parking of aircraft.

In the final phase, an aerotropolis comprising an international airport along with aerospace and defence manufacturing facility and commercial as well as residential areas is to be developed.

The government has also decided to develop maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) and fixed based operator (FBO) facilities in the time bound manner.

A special purpose vehicle comprising the civil aviation department and the industries department will carry out the task of preparation of draft civil aviation policy to ensure additional facilities required for three phases.

The state is already in communication with the ministry of railways and national highways to provide rapid rail and road connectivity between Hisar and New Delhi through high speed train and expressway.

The state government is also planning to extend the existing airstrips in Bhiwani, Narnaul, Karnal and Pinjore from 3,000 ft to 5,000 ft to accommodate bigger aircraft and provide parking and MRO facilities.