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GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF CIVIL AVIATION
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. : 3386
( TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 12th March 2026 )
LIMITED USE OF AIRPORTS
3386. SHRI SANJAY HARIBHAU JADHAV
Will the Minister of CIVIL AVIATION
be pleased to state:-
(a) the reasons for limited utilisation of airports in the country;
(b) whether it is a fact that no regular civil flights are being operated from such
airports and if so, the reasons therefor;
(c) the number of airports in the country that have been leased out;
(d) whether the Government is aware that no regular civil flight services have
been commenced from several airports so far and if so, the reasons therefor; and
(e) whether the Government proposes to commence civil flight operations from
such airports at the earliest and if so, the details thereof?
ANSWER
Minister of State in the Ministry of CIVIL AVIATION (Shri Murlidhar
Mohol)
(a): The under-utilization of certain airports is due to factors such as daytime
runway restrictions at Visual Flight Rules (VFR) only airports, poor visibility
conditions, shortage of aircraft, leasing issues, temporary discontinuation by
airlines, novation of routes and low passenger load factors.
(b) to (e): Some of the airports in the country do not have scheduled flight
operations, primarily due to the operational and commercial considerations of
airlines. With the repeal of the Air Corporations Act in March 1994, Indian
domestic aviation was deregulated. Airlines are free to induct capacity with any
aircraft type and to select the markets and networks they wish to serve and
operate. Hence, it is up to the airline operators to consider the introduction or
expansion of air services to/from any airport in the country, depending upon
their operational and commercial viability.
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has leased out eight of its airports
namely, Delhi, Mumbai, Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Mangaluru, Jaipur, Guwahati
and Thiruvananthapuram for operation, management and development on a
long-term lease basis.
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