Prayagraj Airport

Prayagraj Airport (IATA: IXD, ICAO: VEAB), formerly known as Allahabad Airport, is the domestic airport serving the city of Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh, India. It is located in the Bamrauli suburb of the city, one of the oldest airports in India. This airport is jointly operated by the Indian Air Force and the Airports Authority of India. It is the third busiest airport in Uttar Pradesh after Lucknow International Airport and Varanasi International Airport in terms of passenger traffic and aircraft movements.

"IXD" redirects here. For the airport using the same FAA location identifier, see New Century AirCenter.

Prayagraj Airport
Summary
Airport typePublic/Military
OwnerIndian Air Force
OperatorAirports Authority of India
ServesPrayagraj
LocationBamrauli, Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh, India
Opened1931 (1931)[1][2][3]
Elevation AMSL322 ft / 98 m
Coordinates25°26′24″N 81°44′02″E
Map
IXD is located in Uttar Pradesh
IXD
IXD
Location in Uttar Pradesh
IXD is located in India
IXD
IXD
IXD (India)
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
12/30 8,400 2,560 Asphalt
Statistics (April 2022 - March 2023)
Passengers571,067 (Increase 29.5%)
Aircraft movements7,962 (Increase 23.4%)
Cargo tonnage93 Increase
Source: AAI[4][5][6]

Foreseeing the Kumbh 2019, the airport was upgraded with the addition of a new civil terminal extension in 2018, which was constructed in a record 11 months by the TATA Projects group.[7] The airport continues to serve domestic destinations across the country, and is set to be converted into an international airport before Kumbh 2025.[8]

Bamrauli Air Force Station

It is located in the Bamrauli area of Prayagraj and it is the headquarters of Central Air Command. It is one of the bases of Indian Armed Forces which operates under Central Air Command of Indian Air Force.

History

On 18 February 1911, the domestic commercial aviation took birth in India where Henri Piquet flew a Humber bi-plane carrying mail from a polo field at Allahabad (now Prayagraj) to Naini, which is approximately six miles away.[9] The construction of airport at Allahabad with dedicated airfield was started in 1924.[3]

In 1931, the aerodrome at Allahabad was set up and the foundation for Air Traffic control services was laid with the appointment of an Indian Aerodrome Officer, specially trained at the airport in the UK.[3] It was among the first four international airports of the country. It catered to international flights with direct services to London till 1932.[2]

In July 1933, Imperial Airways commenced the operation of its flight on the Karachi-Jodhpur-Delhi-Kanpur-Allahabad-Kolkata route, which ran until June 1940.[10] The airfield at Bamrauli was also used as one of the five compulsory stops of the MacRobertson Trophy Air Race which took place in October 1934.[11]

From 1941 to the early 2000s, the airport did not cater to any regular commercial flight services. In early months of 2003, Air Sahara became the first carrier to re-introduce services at the airport with connectivity to cities like Delhi and Kolkata.[12] However, the services soon became defunct following economic crisis. In 2005, Alliance Air (a regional connectivity subsidiary under Air India) started its Allahabad-Delhi flight service on the ATR-72 fleet, which continues to be operational to this date, with minor non-operational periods in between.

In 2013, SpiceJet introduced its operation in the Delhi-Allahabad sector, along with Alliance Air commencing its Allahabad-Mumbai flight, both of which were closed down due to non-availability of ILS and Night Landing facility at the airport after running for a few months.[13][14]

Seeking limited operational and structural facilities, construction of a new civilian terminal and installation of ILS system on existing runway began in January 2018.[15] The newly constructed terminal was opened to public in January 2019 and since then is serving regular flight operations at Prayagraj.[16]

Structure

Runway

The airport is served by a single runway 12/30, which is 2,560 meters (8,400 ft) long and 45 meters (148 ft) wide.[17]

Landing amenities

The airport has ILS CAT-I compliant for landing during the night, bad weather and foggy conditions.[18] The Instrument Landing System was installed during 2018–2019 expansion phase, along with construction of the new terminal. Other than enhancing safety for landing of flights in visibility as low as 550 meters, the installation of ILS finally allowed the airport to operate flights at night.[19]

New terminal

Construction of the new terminal began in January 2018 and was completed in December 2018. It was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The terminal was constructed for ₹164 crore (US$21 million).[20][15] A total of 83 acres (34 ha) was allocated for the construction of this terminal.[16]

The terminal is 6700 square meter; has a peak hour capacity of 300 passengers and four aircraft parking bays for Airbus A320 and Boeing 737.[21][20]

The building has an electric operated trolley gate on the link taxi track to segregate the operational area of Airports Authority of India and Indian Air Force. There has been use of fly ash bricks; double insulated door and the building is equipped with water harvesting and has a sewage treatment plant of its own.[22]

Phase 2 extension

In February 2021, it was reported that there are plans for complete makeover of the civil enclave of Prayagraj in Bamrauli in terms of size and the facilities. The AAI proposed an increase in the airport area twice its current size, with the present building of the airport being expanded on both sides, keeping the terminal same. It will also include increasing the size of lounge, the number of aprons and the possibility to add two more aero-bridges.[23]

Airlines and destinations
AirlinesDestinations
Alliance AirBilaspur, Dehradun,[24] Delhi,[25] Kolkata (resumes 31 October 2023)[26]
IndiGo Bangalore, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Dehradun, Delhi, Indore, Lucknow,[27] Mumbai, Pune, Raipur

Statistics
Annual passenger traffic at IXD airport. See Wikidata query.

See also

References
  1. Krishnaswamy, Murali N. (31 October 2011). "One hundred years of flying high". The Hindu. Retrieved 26 March 2018.
  2. "No headway: With no ILS in place, flight delays continue". The Times of India. 10 December 2016. Retrieved 6 August 2022.
  3. Bawa, Y.P. (2016). "Civil Aviation: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow". Indian Forty Years of Independence. Publications Division Ministry of Information & Broadcasting. p. 163. ISBN 978-81-230-2634-3.
  4. "Annexure III – Passenger Data" (PDF). aai.aero. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  5. "Annexure II – Aircraft Movement Data" (PDF). aai.aero. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  6. "Annexure IV – Freight Movement Data" (PDF). aai.aero. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  7. "TATA Projects Builds Prayagraj Airport Terminal in 11 Months". Business Standard. 18 December 2018.
  8. "Mega expansion of Prayagraj Airport before Mahakumbh 2025". Hindustan Times. 1 February 2023.
  9. "India and the World's First Official Air Mail by Airplane". Smithsonian National Postal Museum. Retrieved 26 March 2018.
  10. Robin Higham (2013). Speedbird: The Complete History of BOAC. I.B.Tauris. p. 44. ISBN 978-0-85773-334-4.
  11. "De Panderjager uitgebrand in Allahabad". AviaCrash.nl. Retrieved 26 March 2018.
  12. "Air Sahara inducts maiden Canadian jet – First flight on 28 February". Business Line. 22 February 2003. Archived from the original on 30 June 2003. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
  13. Ganguly, Nivedita (1 February 2013). "SpiceJet begins Delhi-Allahabad daily services". Business Line. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  14. "Alliance Air to launch 3 new flights from Mumbai". Business Line. PTI. 27 August 2013. Retrieved 20 December 2018.
  15. "Allahabad to get India's fastest-built airport terminal building! Here is what AAI is planning". The Financial Express (India). 12 November 2018. Retrieved 14 November 2018.
  16. Sinha, Saurabh (1 September 2017). "Allahabad airport terminal: Allahabad airport may get new terminal before January 2019 Ardh Kumbh". The Economic Times. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
  17. "UP: Environmental Impact Assessment Study Allahabad Airport" (PDF). Airports Authority of India/Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change. 25 July 2018. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
  18. "Allahabad Airport". Airports Authority of India. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
  19. John, Kenneth (24 August 2018). "UP: Bamrauli airport to get night landing facility before Kumbh". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
  20. "PM inaugurates Prayagraj airport in Allahabad". Business Line. 17 December 2018. Retrieved 19 March 2020.
  21. "AAI approved list of Agencies for "Development of New Civil Enclave at Allahabad Airport" – Design & Build (EPC) | AIRPORTS AUTHORITY OF INDIA". Aai.aero. 20 September 2017. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
  22. Sinha, Saurabh (15 December 2018). "Allahabad airport gets new passenger terminal & more aircraft bays ahead of Kumbh". The Times of India. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  23. "New flights, bigger space: Civil enclave set to expand". The Times of India. 7 February 2021. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
  24. "Prayagraj to get one more direct flight to Dehradun". The Times of India. 11 March 2023. Retrieved 13 March 2023.
  25. "Alliance Air Schedule". www.airindia.in. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  26. "Direct flights from Prayagraj to Kolkata to restart from July 3". 21 June 2023. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
  27. "New Flights Information, Status & Schedule | IndiGo". www.goindigo.in.
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