Planning to take a night flight from Pune soon? Well, that won’t be possible for a year now. All 13-night flights scheduled between 8 PM to 8 AM from Pune airport will be rescheduled from October 26. It is so because the Indian Airforce is all set to start the re-carpeting of the runway. While the night flights are not getting cancelled they are just getting rescheduled during the day.
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All The Flights Will Operate Only From 8 AM to 8 PM
As per the reports in Hindustan Times, Airport director Kuldeep Singh assured that none of the flights will be cancelled. He said,
“There are a total of 13 flights which were scheduled at night and all of which have been shifted to the day time. We have 12 hours with us and with social distancing norms, we can operate about four flights in an hour. So currently, we have 42 flights and the capacity to run 48 flights. We cannot squeeze in more flights since we have to follow social distancing norms. Flight operations will continue only from 8 am to 8 pm.”
The Authorities Are Also Planning To Ask For Extra Parking Space From The Indian Air Force
The reports also state that the airport authority committee had also held a meeting with BJP MP Girish Bapat. At the meeting, it was highlighted how the covid-19 pandemic has impacted air travel and has affected the industry. The footfall which was 9 million in 2018-2019, now stooped to 2,000-3,000 between January and February. In terms of the airport, the MP also mentioned that acquiring more land from the Indian Air Force to expand the parking space is also in plans. For now, there is only enough space for seven planes to be parked. It will reportedly be increased to accommodate 14 flights, which would benefit both travellers and flight operators.
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