Bellary Airport

Bellary Airport (IATA: BEP, ICAO: VOBI) is an airport serving Bellary, a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. It was once served by Tata Airlines and Vayudoot. Bellary was a part of the first commercial flight of India which was from Karachi to Madras, flown by J.R.D Tata on 15 October 1932. This is the first airport of Karnataka built as early as 1932. However, as of May 2018, the airport is without commercial air service. Jindal Vijaynagar Airport, located about 36 kilometres (22 mi) west of the city, is used instead for this purpose. A new airport for Bellary is being planned as well.

Bellary Airport
Summary
Airport typePublic
OperatorAirports Authority of India
ServesBellary
LocationBellary, Karnataka, India
Elevation AMSL1,542 ft / 470 m
Coordinates15°09′46″N 76°52′54″E
Map
BEP is located in Karnataka
BEP
BEP
BEP is located in India
BEP
BEP
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
12/30 3,630 1,106 Asphalt
Source: DAFIF[1]

History

Bellary Airport existed as early as 1932, when it figured in an airmail service operated by Tata Airlines (now Air India). The service operated Karachi–Ahmedabad–Mumbai–Bellary–Madras. The British selected Bellary because of its strategic location and the presence of many troops in the city.[2] Afterward, regional carrier Vayudoot operated flights to Bellary.[3]

In 2004, the Government of Karnataka decided to permit commercial flights from an airstrip owned by Jindal Vijaynagar Steel Ltd (JVSL) in Toranagallu, 30 kilometres (19 mi) from Bellary. The airstrip would serve Bellary as well as nearby Hampi and Hospet. This decision resulted in protest from some citizens, who felt the airstrip would only benefit JVSL workers and who wanted Bellary Airport to be upgraded instead. The State Government responded by saying there was no space to extend and widen the runway to make it capable of receiving larger aircraft.[3] Between December 2006 and 2009, the JVSL airstrip received flights from Bangalore and Goa by Air Deccan and later Kingfisher Red. There are now plans to build a new airport for Bellary.

In January 2006, the Airports Authority of India announced it would establish a radar station for air traffic control at Bellary Airport.[4] Construction was carried out by the company Indra Sistemas and was completed by September 2011.[5]

Airfield

Bellary Airport has one runway, 12/30,[lower-alpha 1] which measures 1,106 by 15 metres (3,629 ft × 49 ft) and is connected to a single taxiway at its southern end.[1]

See also

Notes
  1. See Runway#Naming for the naming convention for runways.

References
  1. "Airport information for VOBI". World Aero Data. Archived from the original on 5 March 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) Data current as of October 2006.
  2. Kaggere, Niranjan (3 March 2015). "Mining through Bellary's aviation history". Bangalore Mirror. Retrieved 21 June 2016.
  3. "Bangalore-Bellary flights postponed". The Hindu. 28 September 2004. Retrieved 21 June 2016.
  4. Kamila, Raviprasad (18 January 2006). "AAI to set up radar station in Bellary". The Hindu. Retrieved 21 June 2016.
  5. "Indra completa la implantación de cuatro primeras estaciones radar en India". www.indracompany.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 22 August 2020.
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