Prayagraj: Air travellers from Prayagraj to Mumbai may face fresh inconvenience from July 1 as Akasa Air is set to discontinue its daily Mumbai flight service, retaining only one weekly flight on Mondays.The development came to light during a meeting of the Airport Advisory Committee held on Wednesday evening, where members expressed concern over the likely disruption and sought an explanation from the airline.The meeting was chaired by BJP MP from Phulpur, Praveen Patel, and MLA Siddharth Nath Singh. Akasa Air station manager Mohammad Asif informed the committee that the airline had earlier decided to scale down operations following a sharp rise in aviation turbine fuel prices during the period of conflict in West Asia. Reacting to this, Siddharth Nath Singh said the situation has now largely normalised and the airline should reconsider its decision in the interest of passengers.Akasa Air representatives told the committee that the decision is under review, but no fresh order has been issued so far.If the Mumbai service is reduced to just one day a week, Saturday could become the only day when no flight operation will take place from Prayagraj airport, a possibility that triggered serious concern among committee members. Patel said that he would soon meet the Union civil aviation minister to press for expansion of air services from Prayagraj. He pointed out that there is growing demand for direct flights from the city to Kolkata, Pune, Dehradun and several other destinations. He also held discussions on the issue with officials of IndiGo, Akasa Air and other airlines present at the meeting.Another key issue raised during the meeting was the lack of night landing facilities at Prayagraj airport, which is preventing the launch of several new flights. Officials explained that because of the presence of a Category-I restriction in the airport’s surrounding zone, permission for night landing has not yet been granted. As a result, even when vacant slots are available from Delhi, Prayagraj is unable to improve connectivity. Wing Commander Kunal, representing the Indian Air Force, explained the technical constraints, while Siddharth Nath Singh urged Air Force authorities to work out a practical solution.The proposed cargo service also figured prominently in the meeting. Airport Director Rajesh Chawla said 11 acres of land was already identified for a cargo terminal, but formal transfer of the land is still pending, holding up the project. He said boundary wall construction and related work could begin as soon as written orders are received from the district administration. The Phulpur MP directed ADM City Satyam Mishra to expedite the process.The committee also discussed widening of the road connecting Prayagraj airport to Kaushambi, lack of support from the municipal corporation in garbage disposal at the airport, the demand for additional morning and evening flights to Delhi, extension of the free parking period and the need to start a city bus service between the airport and the city.
