KURNOOL: The Director of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has granted licence to Andhra Pradesh Airports Development Corporation Limited (APDCL) to open Kurnool airport (Orvakal) for public use.
With this development, the last hurdle for commencement of commercial operations has been cleared, said an Airport Authority of India (AAI) official.
Indigo Airlines has been selected as private operator under UDAAN-4 scheme and there are plans to operate flights to Chennai, Visakhapatnam and Bengaluru from February or March, a source said. The airport is 350 km from Vijayawada and 360 km from Bengaluru. The nearest major international airport is Hyderabad, which is about 200 km away.
The Orvakal airport is spread over 970 acres and is at a distance of 20 km from Kurnool.
It has four parking bays. The airport can operate the ATR-72/ Q-400 category of aircraft. For firefighting and rescue operations, the airport has two Rosenbauer airfield crash fire tenders (ACFTs) and an ambulance besides an Advanced Air Traffic Advisory System (AATAS).
The successful bidder will get a long-term lease for construction of hangar, building, facilities and other infrastructure.
Given the increase in air traffic at Bengaluru and Hyderabad airports, the scope for running flight training operations at these airports is becoming difficult, and given the proximity of Orvakal to both these locations, the possibility of setting up these facilities at Kurnool is advantageous to all sides, aviation sources said.
