Night flights from Andhra Pradesh's Visakhapatnam International Airport will be suspended for over four months to facilitate the resurfacing of the runway. From November 15 to the end of March 2024, there will be no flights operating from 9 pm to 8 am, IANS reported.
The closure of the airport for 11 hours every day from November 15 will affect 12 domestic flights and one international flight, which will have to be rescheduled or rerouted to accommodate the runway work. The Navy, which controls the airport, has communicated this decision to the airlines, emphasising the importance of the resurfacing project.
The Air Traffic Control (ATC) of the airport is under Navy control, while the Airports Authority of India (AAI) operates the civil enclave.
Normally, airport runway resurfacing occurs once every 10 years. According to Visakhapatnam airport director S Raja Reddy, the runway was last resurfaced in 2009.
The airport director has sought a reduction in the closure time from 10:30 pm to 7 am to minimise inconvenience to passengers. The AAI will address the issue with Navy headquarters, IANS reported.
"Flights heading to Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Pune, and Bengaluru in the domestic sector, as well as Singapore in the international sector, are most likely to be affected. The winter flight schedule will need to align with the timing provided by the naval authorities. We have already communicated the nighttime runway closure to the headquarters," he further explained.
The suspension of night flights for four months is also likely to impact tour-and-travel operators' businesses during the winter season. Tourists from various parts of the country visit the port city and nearby tourist spots like Araku and Lambasingi after Dasara.
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