Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapati Raju today said the UDAN Phase 2 has dealt with difficult issues. Speaking at a press conference to announce the second round of winners under the regional air connectivity scheme, he said: UDAN 2 will connect 43 airports and helipads in our priority sector, the North-East and the hill states.
Minister of State Jayant Sinha said 4-5 cities were seeing explosion in flights under Udan II. These include Hubli and Kopal in Karnataka. UDAN I and II is expected to cost the government over Rs 800 crore annually.
Civil Aviation Secretary RN Choubey said Kargil will be connected by airport for the first time. New greenfield airport in Kannur will get flights to 8 cities while Allahabad will be connected to 12 cities, he added.
UDAN 2 - connecting 73 new airports and helipads, adding 29 lakh seats annually. Under @narendramodi ji’s guidance, this government is transforming the aviation ecosystem, making it affordable and accessible to the common man. pic.twitter.com/ucsIx2PPXC
— Ashok Gajapathi Raju (@Ashok_Gajapathi) January 24, 2018
Jet Airways wins right to operate UDAN flights and this is the first time the airline has participated in the scheme. IndiGo also wins right. This is first time they are participating. Pawan Hans also wins right to operate helicopter services under UDAN