Mandi Airport

Mandi Airport is a proposed greenfield airport to be built at Nag Chala[1] in Mandi District in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. The airport will be built on a total of 698 acres.[2] The Airports Authority of India (AAI) gave its clearance for the airport after visiting the site in May 2018.[3] In August 2019, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur requested the Fifteenth Finance Commission for a special purpose grant of Rs 2,000 crore towards construction of the airport for operation of wide-body aircraft. The AAI completed its Obstacle Limitation Surfaces survey for the project site in August 2019.[1] The Ministry of Civil Aviation gave in-principle approval for the execution of the project with the help of the AAI in October 2019.[4] In January 2020, AAI signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Himachal Pradesh Government to build and operate the airport through a Joint Venture Company. The airport will have a unidirectional runway, suitable for operation of aircraft up to ATR 72 initially.[5] WAPCOS has been appointed as project consultant and has floated tenders for Environmental Impact Assessment for the project[6] following a site visit in July 2020.[7]

Mandi Airport
Summary
Airport typePublic
OwnerGovernment of India
OperatorAirports Authority of India
ServesMandi
LocationNag Chala
Elevation AMSL2,560 ft / 780 m
Coordinates31°37′23″N 76°56′15″E
Map
Mandi Airport
Mandi Airport

The Himachal Pradesh government had first proposed an international greenfield airport in the Balh valley of Mandi district to the Union Civil Aviation ministry in 2008.[8] Since the existing airports in the state at Kullu, Kangra and Shimla were only capable of handling small aircraft, the State government was keen to develop a bigger airport at Sundar Nagar that could cater to bigger aircraft and had offered land for the project.[9]

References
  1. "Thakur demands special grant for Mandi airport". The Tribune. 7 August 2019. Retrieved 8 August 2019.
  2. "International airport is likely to come up at Balh in Mandi". The Times of India. 11 June 2018. Retrieved 22 September 2018.
  3. "Survey for intl airport at Mandi soon". The Tribune. 21 September 2018. Retrieved 22 September 2018.
  4. "Himachal gets approval for international standard airport". Outlook. 24 October 2019. Retrieved 25 October 2019.
  5. "AAI signed an MoU with Government of Himachal Pradesh for a Greenfield Airport at Nagchala, Himachal Pradesh" (PDF). AAI Press Release. 15 January 2020. Retrieved 22 January 2020.
  6. "EIA Study for Development of GreenfieldAirport at Nagchala (Mandi), Himachal Pradesh". WAPCOS Limited. 23 July 2020. Retrieved 20 September 2020.
  7. "Team visits proposed Mandi airport site for project report". The Tribune. 14 July 2020. Retrieved 20 September 2020.
  8. "Himachal proposes international airport in Balh valley". Business Standard. 25 August 2008. Retrieved 8 August 2019.
  9. "Sundernagar to put HP on international air map". The Indian Express. 28 March 2007. Retrieved 8 August 2019.
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