Considering terrain, only 19-seater planes can fly to Kargil: Govt

The government is making all efforts to start civilian flight services to Kargil and only 19-seater aircraft can be operated to the airport there, Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said on Thursday.

The minister told the Lok Sabha that considering the runway at the existing Kargil airport, terrain difficulties as well as landing and take off protocols, only 19-seater aircraft can be operated.

In this regard, efforts are going on with airlines to look at starting civilian flights to Kargil under the UDAN scheme, he added.

UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik) is the civil aviation ministry's regional air connectivity scheme. An amount of Rs 9.2 crore has been sanctioned for the airport and some electrical works have also been done.

"We are making all efforts to start civilian flights to Kargil... if some airlines say they are ready to provide connectivity from Kargil to Srinagar or Jammu, then we are ready to do the remaining work and provide for the civilian services," the minister said during the Question Hour.

He also said that efforts will be made to start services at the earliest.

A multi-disciplinary team comprising officials of the Airports Authority of India (AAI), the Indian Air Force and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had visited sites at Wakha Kargil, Turtuk, Diskit, Nyoma and Padum/Zanskar in 2021 for examining the feasibility of these sites for construction of airports in the Union Territory of Ladakh.

"However, none of the sites were found suitable for airport construction," Naidu said.

In addition, on the request of the Ladakh Administration, the minister said AAI engaged the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) to explore the feasibility of operating Boeing 737 and Airbus 320 aircraft at the Kargil airport.

"ICAO's study observed that operation of such aircrafts is not feasible in the existing airstrip," he noted.

Boeing 737 and Airbus 320 are narrow-body planes.