Kargil Airport Template:Airport codes is a military airfield in Kargil district Template:Cvt away from Kargil and Template:Cvt from Leh. It is one of two airports in the union territory of Ladakh. The airport will be expanded for operation of commercial jets by the end of 2024.[1]
History
The airport was built by the State Government of Jammu and Kashmir in 1996 for civilian operations.[2] and was leased to the Airports Authority of India (AAI).[3] Kargil rose to prominence in the late 1990s as the site of an undeclared war between India and Pakistan.[4] AAI transferred the operational control and maintenance to Indian Air Force (IAF) because the airport was vulnerable to shelling by Pakistani forces.[5]
The civil enclave at the airfield is managed by the state government. The terminal building has the capacity to handle 100 peak hour passengers at a time. It was built by the Airports Authority of India (AAI) at a cost of 350 million Rupees, initially for civilian use but was transferred to the Indian Air Force (IAF) in 2003 after it was damaged in the Kargil War in 1999.[6]
The Air Force operates its An-32 aircraft from for an air courier service that transports civilians from Kargil to Srinagar and Jammu during the harsh winter season.[7]
The airport is a much debated issue for local politicians as well as the public who pursue the point that the airport should be opened to commercial civilian services.[8][9] Air Mantra became the first commercial company to land a civilian aircraft at the airport when it landed a 17-seater aircraft with dignitaries, including then Chief Minister of the state Omar Abdullah, on board in January, 2012.[10] However, the service could not be sustained.[11]
The Jammu and Kashmir government sanctioned ₹ billion to upgrade the airport to handle commercial flights. A pre-feasibility study was conducted by the AAI in June 2019. The report recommended extending the existing Template:Convert runway by another Template:Cvt in order to make it suitable for commercial jets.[12]
References
- ↑ CEC Kargil Dr Jaffer takes stock of Kargil Airport expansion. Ladakh(22 Dec 2023). Retrieved 29 July 2019.
- ↑ Kargil to be a major Indian Air Force base(29 January 2018). Retrieved 29 July 2019.
- ↑ Kargil Airport To Be Expanded(21 July 2014). Retrieved 29 July 2019.
- ↑ Regulator asks SpiceJet to start flights to Kargil(27 September 2012). Retrieved 29 July 2019.
- ↑ Ministry of defence to run Kargil airport. Dawn(29 December 2002). Retrieved 29 July 2019.
- ↑ A Full-Fledged Air Base in Kargil and its Implication for India - Analysis. Retrieved 14 May 2013.
- ↑ J&K starts air courier service for Kargil. The Economic Times(20 December 2007). Retrieved 29 July 2019.
- ↑ MATTERS UNDER RULE-377: Regarding Need For Early Commissioning Of ... on 22 November, 2000
- ↑ Operate air service to Kargil Akhoon to CA Minister Lastupdate:- Fri, 12 Aug 2011 18:30:00 GMT GreaterKashmir.com
- ↑ Civilian flight takes off from Kargil airport(7 January 2013). Retrieved 29 July 2019.
- ↑ Flights to Kargil, Kasauli soon(29 January 2018). Retrieved 29 July 2019.
- ↑ Kargil airport to operate commercial flights. The Times of India. Retrieved 2020-04-13.