Minister of State for Civil Aviation and Pune MP, Murlidhar Mohol,on Sunday, marked the launch of operations at Pune Airport's new terminal by presenting the first passenger with a boarding pass. The terminal was virtually inaugurated by PM Narendra Modi on March 10.
Air India and Air India Express are the first airlines to operate from the terminal, with Air India Flight AI-858 (Pune-Delhi) and Air India Express Flight I5 320 (Pune-Bhubaneswar) as the inaugural flights.
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The new terminal became a point of contention between the opposition and the government due to its perceived delayed inauguration. The opposition claimed that the government waited for PM Modi's schedule to align for the launch. However, the government stated that the delay was due to pending works.
Operational launch delayed due to insufficient CISF personnel
The new terminal, costing ₹423 crore and spanning 51,595 square meters, was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 10. However, its operational launch was delayed due to insufficient Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel. Recently, Murlidhar Mohol secured approval for an additional 222 CISF personnel from Union Home Minister Amit Shah, enabling the terminal to commence operations.
With a passenger handling capacity of nine million per annum and a peak hour capacity of 3,000 passengers, the new terminal significantly improves on the existing terminal's capacity of 7.7 million per annum and a peak hour capacity of 2,400 passengers. Traffic will be directed from the new building to two exit points: the newly constructed Vimannagar Road and Symbiosis/Lohegaon Road. Departure and arrival entry points will remain the same for passengers using the existing terminal.
