PM Narendra Modi today flagged off the first regional flights under the Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik (UDAN) scheme from Shimla Airport, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh. The three inaugural flights were launched in the sectors of Shimla-Delhi, Kadapa-Hyderabad and Nanded-Hyderabad.
India is one of the world's fastest-growing aviation markets, with around 70 million domestic tickets sold annually and passenger numbers rising 20 per cent a year. Officials say raising regional air connectivity would see annual ticket sales jump to 300 million by 2022.
Here are some points you need to know about UDAN:
1. The PM launched the flight from the hill station to the Capital.
2. UDAN ('Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik') is a first-of-its-kind scheme globally to stimulate regional connectivity through a market-based mechanism.
3. The UDAN Scheme is a key component of the National Civil Aviation Policy (NCAP) which was released by the Ministry of Civil Aviation on June 15, 2016.
4. "Airfare for a 1-hour journey of approximately 500 kilometres on a fixed wing aircraft or for 30-minute journey on a helicopter would be capped at Rs 2,500."
5. The Airports Authority of India has approved 27 proposals which will see 27 currently served airports, 12 currently underserved airports and 31 currently unserved airports (for a total of 70 airports) connected.
6. Of the 70 airports, 24 airports are in the western region, 17 in the north, 11 in the south, 12 in the east and six in regions of the northeast.
7. As many as 22 states and two Union Territories will be connected through these 27 proposals.
8. The airline companies chosen are Airline Allied Services (Alliance Air), SpiceJet, Turbo Megha Airways, Air Deccan and Air Odisha.
9. The seating capacity of airlines under the scheme will range from 19 to 78, and 50 percent of the seats in every flight will have a fare cap of Rs 2,500 per seat per hour.
Mode of transportation- Flight
Price- 2500/
No of seats- 19 to 78
Total available seats- 50% of the total seats
Announced- October 2016
Launched- 27 April 2017
Routes:-
1 Delhi to Bhatinda
2 Delhi to Shimla
3 Delhi to Kullu
4 Delhi to Agra
5 Delhi to Pathankot
6 Delhi to Pantnagar
7 Delhi to Ludhiana
8 Delhi to Bikaner
9 Jaipur to Agra
10 Jaipur to Jaisalmer
11 Shillong to Agartala
12 Shillong to Aizwal
13 Shillong to Dimapur
14 Shillong to Imphal
15 Shillong to Silchar
16 Kolkata to Burnpur
17 Kolkata to Cooch Behar
18 Kolkata to Durgapur
19 Kolkata to Jamshedpur
20 Kolkata to Rourkela
21 Puducherry to Hyderabad
22 Puducherry to Salem
23 Puducherry to Chennai
24 Ahmedabad to Diu
25 Ahmedabad to Dwarka
26 Ahmedabad to Jamnagar
27 Ahmedabad to Mundra
28 Mumbai to Kandla
29 Mumbai to Porbandar
30 Mumbai to Jalgaon
31 Mumbai to Nashik
32 Mumbai to Sholapur
2 Delhi to Shimla
3 Delhi to Kullu
4 Delhi to Agra
5 Delhi to Pathankot
6 Delhi to Pantnagar
7 Delhi to Ludhiana
8 Delhi to Bikaner
9 Jaipur to Agra
10 Jaipur to Jaisalmer
11 Shillong to Agartala
12 Shillong to Aizwal
13 Shillong to Dimapur
14 Shillong to Imphal
15 Shillong to Silchar
16 Kolkata to Burnpur
17 Kolkata to Cooch Behar
18 Kolkata to Durgapur
19 Kolkata to Jamshedpur
20 Kolkata to Rourkela
21 Puducherry to Hyderabad
22 Puducherry to Salem
23 Puducherry to Chennai
24 Ahmedabad to Diu
25 Ahmedabad to Dwarka
26 Ahmedabad to Jamnagar
27 Ahmedabad to Mundra
28 Mumbai to Kandla
29 Mumbai to Porbandar
30 Mumbai to Jalgaon
31 Mumbai to Nashik
32 Mumbai to Sholapur
