NEW DELHI: Flying in and out of Visakhapatnam will cost more once the upcoming new Bhogapuram airport gets operational later this summer and then commercial flights from the existing Naval airbase will stop. Domestic passengers flying out and into Bhogapuram will pay Rs 835 and Rs 355, respectively, as user development fee (UDF). This fee for outbound international passengers will be 1,255 and Rs 545 for inbound (taxes extra on all), according to the ad hoc tariff order issued by the imports Economic Regulatory Authority of India (AERA).The GMR-backed Visakhapatnam International Airport Ltd (GVIAL) had proposed a distance-based UDF for domestic passengers in three slabs — less then 500 km, 500-1,000 km and over 1,000 km. The UDF proposed for outbound ranged from Rs 840 to Rs 2,300 and inbound ranged from Rs 380 and Rs 1,000. The UDF proposed for international departures and arrivals was Rs 3,200 and Rs 1,250, respectively.The S K G Rahate-headed AERA opted for a not confusing single UDF rate for domestic and a much lower one for international travellers at the new airport which is being developed at a cost of about Rs 4,600 crore in phase I. Higher charges for gleaming new infra, as opposed to lower ones at older facilities where the capex has been recovered over decades of use, are expected and nothing new globally.“The existing airport in Visakhapatnam is a civil enclave currently owned and operated by the Navy (INS Dega) while the passenger terminal is operated by Airports Authority of India. Commercial operations at the existing Vizag Naval Airfield will be stopped once the operations commence at Bhogapuram International Airport,” says the AERA order.This is the first time in 18 years when an existing airport in a city is being shut after a new one opens. In 2008, Bengaluru and Hyderabad had got new airports after which Begumpet and HAL were closed in those two metros for commercial operations, respectively. Since then, new airports opened in Mopa (Goa) in 2023 without commercial operations being stopped at the existing naval airbase of Dabolim. Last year and this month, Mumbai and Delhi NCR got second airports in Navi Mumbai and Greater noida without the existing ones being shut for commercial operations.When asked about the reason for doing so in Vizag, a senior official had recently said the same was needed for ensuring the commercial viability of Bhogapuram. After the experience of Greater Noida Airport which opened on June 15, passengers can only hope that the state govt ensures timely completion of connectivity issues. Unlike Delhi NCR where people still have the option of flying in and out of IGIA if they find Greater Noida too far and/or poorly connected, Vizag flyers won’t have that option as Bhogapuram will be their sole port of call irrespective of the connectivity.
