Official sources said pending approval from the DGCA, the aircraft landing from Vesu-end of the airport were able to use only 1,905 metre runway, which has been increased to 2,290 metre. The approval for the 2,290 metre runway will end the issues of load penalty for airlines and dynamic airfares for passengers.
“We have received approval from DGCA for operating the full-length runway, except the displaced portion of 615 metre. The aircraft landing from Vesu-end will be able to use 2,290 metre runway, while the aircraft landing from Dumas side will be able to use full-length runway,” said airport director Dilip Sajnani.
Airlines operating from the Diamond City were facing a unique problem, especially during the summer months, known as ‘load penalty’. This means booking seats less than available.
If suppose Air India is operating Airbus 319 between Surat and Delhi having a total of 140 seats, it could actually accommodate only 105 to 106 passengers due to load penalty, which is aimed at ensuring safe take-off at short runways.
The actual runway length at the city’s airport was extended from 2,250 metre to 2,905 metre. However, the airlines operating from Surat airport could make use of only 1,905 metre of runway-pending approval for 185 metre completed patch of runway and 615 metre runway displaced by DGCA due to building height obstruction at Vesu.
‘Member Of We Work For A Working Airport at Surat’ (WWWAS) Linesh Shah said, “We were crusading for this for a long time and finally the DGCA has approved 2,290 metre runway. This means that the load penalty issue for airline is over and that the passengers won’t have to pay dynamic fares.”
WWWAS member Sanjay Jain said, “With 2,290 metre runway length, international flights will have no issues to operate from Surat airport. Now we want the Central Government to sanction customs notified status for the airport for international operations.”
by via Surat News, Latest Surat News Headlines & Live Updates - Times of India
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