Parliament Question: Non-Operational Airports

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF CIVIL AVIATION LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. : 3401 ( TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 12th March 2026 ) NON-OPERATIONAL AIRPORTS 3401. SMT BAG MITALI Will the Minister of CIVIL AVIATION be pleased to state:- (a) the total number of airports along with the number of those currently non- operational across the country; (b) the total number of greenfield airports constructed and presently non- operational; (c) whether any feasibility surveys and technical readiness assessments were conducted before launching these airports and if so, the details thereof; (d) whether it is a fact that despite the inauguration of eleven new airports in Bihar, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh under the UDAN scheme, only four airports currently have scheduled commercial flights and if so, the details thereof; and (e) whether certain airports have failed to sustain flight operations after the expiry of Viability Gap Funding and if so, the reasons therefor? ANSWER Minister of State in the Ministry of CIVIL AVIATION (Shri Murlidhar Mohol) (a): The total number of operational airports in the country is 164. In addition, 22 airports of Airports Authority of India (AAI) are non-operational at present. (b): The Government of India has accorded in-principle approval for the construction of 24 new Greenfield airports across the country so far. As on date, 13 Greenfield airports have been operationalised. Out of these, Kushinagar Airport does not have scheduled flight operations at present. (c): As per Greenfield Airports (GFA) Policy, 2008, Airport Developer is required to identify a suitable site and get the Pre-feasibility Study conducted and submit a proposal to the Central Government for 'Site Clearance' followed by 'In-Principle' approval. (d) & (e): Under the UDAN scheme, the airports namely Darbhanga and Purnea in the state of Bihar, Deoghar and Jamshedpur in the state of Jharkhand, and Kanpur, Prayagraj, Kushinagar, Bareilly, Chitrakoot, Moradabad, Aligarh, Azamgarh, Shravasti, Ayodhya, Hindon and Agra in the state of Uttar Pradesh have been operationalized.All the above airports have scheduled flight operations, except six airports in Uttar Pradesh, namely, Kushinagar, Chitrakoot, Moradabad, Aligarh, Azamgarh, and Shravasti, where operations are temporarily discontinued due to factors such as completion of the three-year Viability Gap Funding (VGF) support period, poor visibility conditions, daytime runway restrictions at VFR- only airports, shortage of aircraft, leasing issues, temporary discontinuation by airlines, novation of routes and low passenger load factors. ******