Juhu airport may be extended into the sea: AAI
15th Feb 2010NEW DELHI: With air traffic congestion reaching an unacceptable threshold in Mumbai, the government has been forced to put on fast track its age-old plan of reviving the Juhu airport to ease some pressure off Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA).
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has appointed consulting major KPMG to draw up a development plan for Juhu airport.
The plan to extend the runway in phases could ultimately see the airstrip jutting into the sea with reclaimed parts of the famous Juhu beach and seafront — after an environmental nod for the proposal. Presently, the Juhu runway is about 4,000 feet long. In the first phase, it will be extended to 5,500 feet to be able to accommodate ATRs. The eventual development plan is to extend it to 7,500 feet to allow it to be fit for slightly bigger planes. But this will involve reclaiming the sea — hence stiff green clearances.
‘‘The plan is to reactivate Juhu so that small planes can be shifted here. This will enhance the capacity of CSIA as it will handle big, fast-moving aircraft. This job is proposed to be done in two phases — city side and airport area. KPMG has been asked to make a master plan,’’ AAI chairman V P Agrawal
