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Kazi Nazrul Islam Airport

Coordinates: 23°37′17″N 87°14′36″E / 23.62139°N 87.24333°E / 23.62139; 87.24333
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Kazi Nazrul Islam Airport
Summary
Airport typePublic
OwnerBengal Aerotropolis Projects Limited (BAPL)
OperatorAirports Authority of India
ServesDurgapur
Asansol
LocationAndal, Durgapur, West Bengal,
 India
Opened18 May 2015; 9 years ago (2015-05-18)
Operating base forIndiGo
Elevation AMSL302 ft / 92 m
Coordinates23°37′17″N 87°14′36″E / 23.62139°N 87.24333°E / 23.62139; 87.24333
Website
Map
RDP is located in West Bengal
RDP
RDP
Location in West Bengal
RDP is located in India
RDP
RDP
RDP (India)
Map
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
16/34 2,800 9,186 Asphalt
Statistics (April 2023 – March 2024)
Passengers514,760 (Increase 4.6%)
Aircraft movements3,234 (Decrease 0.5%)
Cargo tonnage491 (Increase 1.8%)
Source: AAI[2][3][4]

Kazi Nazrul Islam Airport (IATA: RDP, ICAO: VEDG), also known as Durgapur Airport,[5][6] is a domestic airport mainly serving the cities of Durgapur and Asansol. It is located at the Andal region of Durgapur in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is named after the renowned Bengali poet, Kazi Nazrul Islam. The airport is roughly 17 km from Durgapur’s City Centre, 20 km from Raniganj Bus stop and 34 km from Asansol’s City Bus Terminus.

The airport's hinterland comprises the cities of Durgapur, Asansol, Bardhaman, Bankura, Purulia, Bolpur in West Bengal and Dhanbad & Bokaro in Jharkhand. It is part of the country's first private sector Aerotropolis, being developed by Bengal Aerotropolis Projects Limited (BAPL) in Andal, Durgapur. The airport was officially inaugurated on 19 September 2013 by the Chief Minister of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee.[7] According to 2023–24 data,the airport is the third busiest airport of West Bengal and the 58th-busiest airport of India.[8]

History

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Construction planning

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The project was conceived in 2006–07 during the Left Front government. The construction of the airport was completed on 2013. But for several reasons, the airport did not receive final operational clearance from the aviation regulator DGCA until 24 April 2015. Regular Commercial Flights started from 2015.[9]

Commencement of the airport

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On 10 May 2015, Prime Minister Narendra Modi became the first passenger to use the new airport when he flew out to Delhi, aboard an Indian Air Force Boeing 737 VIP aircraft, even before commercial airlines started their regular service from the airport.[10] Scheduled commercial operation commenced on 18 May 2015.[11] Another airline, Zoom Air, also begun flights on the Delhi – Durgapur – Kolkata route but after three months the flight was stopped due to lack of passengers. The airport gained popularity in 2018 with connections to Delhi and Hyderabad by Air India and to Mumbai and Chennai in October 2019 by SpiceJet.

Plan

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The airport has been built over 650 acres (can be expanded more at the future) at a cost of ₹600 crore (US$72 million).[12] The airport has 70% open green space for facilitating fresh green environment within the airport area.

Future Development

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Sajjan Jindal-led JSW Group is planning to invest in the infrastructure development of Durgapur airport.[13] A source close to the development said: “JSW Infra is likely to do some work in Durgapur Airport. It may be for development of the airport city along with managing the airport. There is a lot of scope in an airport city like developing IT park and other facilities.”

Ownership

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The State Government also has a 26.05% stake through West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation. Singapore's Changi Airports International (CAI) has a 30.21% stake in BAPL. Other Indian promoters include IL&FS, Pragati Social Infrastructure & Development, Pragati 47, Lend Lease Company India and Citystar Infrastructure.

Infrastructure

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Air Traffic Control Tower

Terminal

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The 5,750 square metre passenger terminal building has a capacity of 1 million passengers per annum and can be expanded in the future to a capacity to 2.5 million per annum. It has six check-in counters with Common Use Terminal equipment (CUTE) in the departure lounge and two baggage conveyor belts at the arrival hall.[14] The airport is equipped with category VI firefighting and rescue capability.[14] The terminal has ATMs, Wi-Fi Services, a Ticket Booking Counter, F & B Outlets, and Cab Booking Services.

Runway

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The airport's 2,800-meter runway (which is expandable up to 3,315-metre) is equipped with a CAT I instrument landing system (ILS) and can handle narrow-body aircraft like Airbus A320 and Boeing 737. The airport apron has four parking bays and a Helipad.

Airlines and destinations

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After inauguration, this airport had flights to Kolkata by Alliance Air, SpiceJet , and Air India. However, the flight was discontinued after few months. Over the next few years, the airport gained connectivity to other major metro cities via IndiGo.

As of November 2024, the following airlines operates direct flights from the airport:

AirlinesDestinationsRefs
IndiGo Bangalore, Bhubaneswar, Chennai,[15] Delhi, Guwahati,[16] Hyderabad, Mumbai, Siliguri[16][17][18][19][20][21]

Connectivity

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Roads

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The airport is conveniently connected to Durgapur by road. It is also connected to Raniganj and Asansol through National Highway 19. There are dedicated transport options available to reach the airport and reach passengers’ desired destinations from the airport.

Railway

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The closest railway station to the airport is Andal Junction (UDL), which is around 10 km away from the airport and other nearby railway stations are Waria (OYR), Raniganj (RNG) Durgapur (DGR) which are around 18 km and 20 km away by road.

Statistics

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Year Passengers Passengers % change Aircraft Movement Aircraft Movement % change
2023–2024 5,14,760 Increase4.60% 3,234 Decrease0.5%
2022–2023 4,92,020 Increase96.8% 3,344 Increase73.6%
2021–2022 2,49,975[22] Increase188.78% 1,926[23] Increase200.94%
2020–2021 86,561 Decrease 49.42% 640 Decrease 57.97%
2019–2020 1,71,155[24] Increase272.8%[24] 1,523[25] Increase239.2%[25]
2018–2019 45,907[24] Increase846.47% 385 Increase63.1%
2017–2018 5,377 Decrease-6.9%[8] – Increase[26]
2016–2017 5,950[27] Decrease-30.1% 236[28] Decrease-53.4%
2015–2016 8,515[27] – 506[28] –

Busiest routes

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Busiest routes to and from Kazi Nazrul Islam Airport (Till March 2023)[24]
Rank Airport Total
passengers		 Change
2022/ 23
1 Chennai 17,490 1000
2 Mumbai 16,341 1200
3 Delhi 16,171 1600
4 Hyderabad 15,643 1800

Accidents and Incidents

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On 1 May 2022, a SpiceJet Boeing 737–800 aircraft VT-SLH operating from Mumbai to Durgapur as SG-945, encountered severe turbulence while descending at Durgapur, injuring 14 passengers and 3 flight attendants out of 195 occupants (including two pilots and four flight attendants).[29][30] A passenger, Akbar Ansari (48), died of a spinal injury five months later.[31]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Mishra, Mihir. "Bengal's Kazi Nazrul Islam Airport receives final regulatory approval – The Economic Times". The Economic Times. Economictimes.indiatimes.com. Retrieved 30 April 2017.
  2. ^ "Annexure III – Passenger Data" (PDF). aai.aero. Retrieved 22 April 2024.
  3. ^ "Annexure II – Aircraft Movement Data" (PDF). aai.aero. Retrieved 22 April 2024.
  4. ^ "Annexure IV – Freight Movement Data" (PDF). aai.aero. Retrieved 22 April 2024.
  5. ^ "Durgapur Airport (RDP) or Kazi Nazrul Islam Airport". goindigo. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  6. ^ "Jindal-led JSW Group to invest in Durgapur airport". The Times Of India. 13 July 2024.
  7. ^ "Profile on Kazi Nazrul Islam International Airport". CAPA. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
  8. ^ a b "Traffic News for the month of March 2019: Annexure-III" (PDF). Airports Authority of India. pp. 4–5. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  9. ^ "Bengal Aerotropolis Projects gets DGCA nod for airport". Business Standard. 27 April 2015. Retrieved 27 April 2015.
  10. ^ "Narendra Modi first passenger to use Durgapur airport". The Economic Times. 11 May 2015. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
  11. ^ Mishra, Mihir (18 May 2015). "Air India operates inaugural flight between Durgapur & Kolkata". Economic Times. Retrieved 19 May 2015.
  12. ^ "Rechristened Bengal aerotropolis unveiled". Business Standard. 20 September 2013. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
  13. ^ "Jindal-led JSW Group to invest in Durgapur airport". The Times Of India. 13 July 2024.
  14. ^ a b "Aerotropolis to bank on service, not size". The Times of India. 10 February 2012. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
  15. ^ "IndiGo to launch direct flight connectivity from Chennai to Durgapur from May 16". The Telegraph. 19 April 2024. Retrieved 22 April 2024.
  16. ^ a b Pall, Samreen (11 June 2024). "Durgapur: New Direct Flights To Bhubaneswar, Bagdogra, And Guwahati End". News18. Retrieved 11 June 2024.
  17. ^ "Flight Information". 7 May 2021. Retrieved 22 July 2021.
  18. ^ "Indigo to operate 22 new domestic flights from 28 March". www.livemint.com. Retrieved 11 February 2021.
  19. ^ "Unveiling our all-new domestic destination - Durgapur, a beautiful city in West Bengal". IndiGo. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
  20. ^ "Durgapur airport is now connected to 8 cities in India with direct flights".
  21. ^ "Flight Information". kniairport.com. 7 May 2021. Retrieved 19 August 2021.
  22. ^ "Traffic News for the month of March 2022: Annexure-III" (PDF). www.aai.aero. Retrieved 24 April 2022.
  23. ^ "Traffic News for the month of March 2022: Annexure-II" (PDF). www.aai.aero. Retrieved 24 April 2022.
  24. ^ a b c d "Airports of India | knowIndia.net".
  25. ^ a b "INTERNATIONAL AIRCRAFT MOVEMENTS" (PDF). Airports Authority of India. November 2019.
  26. ^ "Traffic News for the month of March 2019: Annexure-II" (PDF). Airports Authority of India. 1 May 2019. p. 3. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  27. ^ a b "Traffic News for the month of March 2017: Annexure-III" (PDF). Airports Authority of India. pp. 3–4. Retrieved 1 May 2018.
  28. ^ a b "Traffic News for the month of March 2017: Annexure-II" (PDF). Airports Authority of India. pp. 3–4. Retrieved 1 May 2018.
  29. ^ "DGCA to probe SpiceJet Mumbai-Durgapur flight turbulence incident, says Union Minister Scindia". TimesNow. Retrieved 5 July 2022.
  30. ^ "Turbulence on Mumbai-Durgapur flight: DGCA issues show-cause notice to SpiceJet". Hindustan Times. 2 June 2022. Retrieved 5 July 2022.
  31. ^ "5 months on, 48-year-old injured in SpiceJet turbulence accident dies". Hindustan Times. 29 October 2022. Retrieved 29 October 2022.
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