Union civil aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu announced on Monday that the civil aviation ministry is set to revive seaplane services in India by October, with operations expected to begin on at least two routes.
"Seaplane operation was there once, but it was limited to a single route. The government has simplified the guidelines to operate seaplanes, and we hope that by October, we will have two seaplanes in the country operating either on the Andaman & Nicobar, Kerala, or Andhra Pradesh network," Naidu said while addressing the Eastern Region Civil Aviation Ministers’ Conference.
The conference was inaugurated by Odisha chief minister Mohan Charan Majhi in the presence of Union MoS civil aviation Mohol Murlidhar, Chhattisgarh minister Om Prakash Choudhary, and senior officials from the Centre and eastern states.
The service may also be extended to Odisha’s Chilika Lake and other parts of the eastern coast, the minister said. "The service can be started on any water body where you have more than five feet depth and 200 metres of landing space," he added.
The minister also called on states to propose innovative ideas and identify new locations to help expand the seaplane network.
He highlighted that the government has simplified norms for setting up waterdromes , pilot training, and operational regulations to encourage airlines to explore the opportunity.
On the growing demand for pilots, Naidu said that India’s education sector will require nearly 3,000 new pilots every year, given the 1,700 aircraft currently on order.
"To achieve this, the Ministry will start a ranking system for FTOs operating in India from October," Naidu said.
The Union government has brought seaplane services under the UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik) scheme and identified around 56 potential routes for their launch.
"Seaplane operation was there once, but it was limited to a single route. The government has simplified the guidelines to operate seaplanes, and we hope that by October, we will have two seaplanes in the country operating either on the Andaman & Nicobar, Kerala, or Andhra Pradesh network," Naidu said while addressing the Eastern Region Civil Aviation Ministers’ Conference.
The conference was inaugurated by Odisha chief minister Mohan Charan Majhi in the presence of Union MoS civil aviation Mohol Murlidhar, Chhattisgarh minister Om Prakash Choudhary, and senior officials from the Centre and eastern states.
The service may also be extended to Odisha’s Chilika Lake and other parts of the eastern coast, the minister said. "The service can be started on any water body where you have more than five feet depth and 200 metres of landing space," he added.
The minister also called on states to propose innovative ideas and identify new locations to help expand the seaplane network.
He highlighted that the government has simplified norms for setting up waterdromes , pilot training, and operational regulations to encourage airlines to explore the opportunity.
On the growing demand for pilots, Naidu said that India’s education sector will require nearly 3,000 new pilots every year, given the 1,700 aircraft currently on order.
"To achieve this, the Ministry will start a ranking system for FTOs operating in India from October," Naidu said.
The Union government has brought seaplane services under the UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik) scheme and identified around 56 potential routes for their launch.
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