Comments
Kerala has taken a significant step towards realising its dream of seaplane tourism with the flight for the trial run landed at Cochin International Airport on Sunday afternoon from Vijayawada.
Tourism Minister PA Mohamed Riyas will flag off the flight ‘de Havilland Canada’ as part of the trial run from waterdrome at Bolgatty to Mattupetty Dam in Idukki on Monday morning.
The landing of the flight marks the beginning of a new era in the State’s tourism sector promising to connect the waterways through the skies. The seaplane service that comes under the Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS)-UDAN of the Civil Aviation Ministry is aimed at increasing the connectivity of the airports and the backwaters of Kerala.
Kerala, according to the Minister, places top priority on enhancing connectivity, as it plays a vital role in the growth of tourism sector. The launch of heli-tourism is a significant step in this direction, making our destinations more accessible for quick, seamless travel. Seaplane services will soon complement the efforts to position Kerala as a well-connected destination through a robust network of transportation channels.
Switzerland-based private company and SpiceJet are the service operators of ‘de Havilland Canada’. The trial services were conducted in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. Prior to the launch, a high-level inspection was held under the supervision of officials of Cochin Port Trust, Indian Navy and the seaplane.
Biju Prabhakar, state Aviation Secretary and chairman of KSEB, said that Kerala could attract high-budget tourists with the introduction of the seaplane service. Kerala could even compete with Maldives where several seaplane services link tourism places within the country.
According to tourism department officials, the seaplane project offers a lot of prospects to Kerala’s tourism sector due to the presence of abundant water bodies. Apart from Bolgatty and Mattupetty, setting up of waterdromes is under consideration in Kovalam, Ashtamudi, Punnamada, Kumarakom, Vembanad, Malambuzha and Bekal.
Comments
Comments
Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.
We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.