In good news for Punekars, Union Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol has announced that Pune, the cultural capital of Maharashtra, will be connected to European destinations by flights in the next 1.5 years.
"There are currently no direct international flights operating out of Pune because the runway isn’t long enough to accommodate wide-bodied aircraft used for such routes. But the process for extending the runway has already begun. Once the runway is widened, within the next one-and-a-half years, Punekars will be able to travel directly from Pune to international destinations with flights connecting to European destinations," Mohol said.
The Pune MP said nearly 300 acres of land will be acquired for this expansion. "The Maharashtra government will bear 60% of the total cost of land acquisition; 20% by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC); 10% by the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC); and the remaining 10% by the Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA)," he added.
Meanwhile, Air India has suspended its Pune–Singapore direct flight service until at least July 15.
In a statement, Air India said it was part of its overall reduction in narrow-body operations by less than 5%. "This voluntary decision leads to the temporary suspension of Air India's services on three routes and a reduction in frequency on 19 routes," the airline said. "The changes are effective until at least July 15. These reductions aim to strengthen Air India's network-wide operational stability and minimise last-minute inconvenience to passengers," it added.
This comes after the intense scrutiny following the tragic plane crash in Ahmedabad.
