Veer Surendra Sai Airport | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||
| Owner | Airports Authority of India | ||||||||||
| Serves | Jharsuguda | ||||||||||
| Location | Durlaga, Jharsuguda,Odisha,India | ||||||||||
| Opened | 22 September 2018; 6 years ago (2018-09-22) | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 757 ft / 231 m | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 21°54′48″N84°03′01″E / 21.91333°N 84.05028°E /21.91333; 84.05028 | ||||||||||
| Website | Jharsuguda Airport | ||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||
  JRG Location of airport in Odisha Show map of Odisha JRG JRG (India) Show map of India | |||||||||||
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| Runways | |||||||||||
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| Statistics (April 2023 – March 2024) | |||||||||||
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Veer Surendra Sai Airport (IATA:JRG,ICAO:VEJH), also known asJharsuguda Airport, is adomestic airport servingJharsuguda,Odisha,India. The airport is located 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) north-east from the city centre.[4] The airport is located in Durlaga village, approximately 8.5 km (5.3 mi) fromJharsuguda Junction Railway Station . The airport is named after the revolutionaryVeer Surendra Sai and it is the second commercial airport in the state ofOdisha.[5] The airport caters to areas like the districts ofJharsuguda,Sambalpur,Sundergarh,Bargarh,Debagarh,Bolangir,Subarnapur,Boudh of Orissa andRaigarh,Korba,Surguja,Jashpur districts of Chhattisgarh.
The researcher points out that in the last two years of World War II, the allied forces had anticipated a Japanese onslaught from the North-East and a string of airfields were made in the region. These included the airfields at Jharsuguda, Amarda Road, Charbatia, Hijli, Dudhkundi, Digri, Salua, Chakulia, Kalaikunda and Bishnupur.[6] AfterIndia gained Independence from the British, the airfield was abandoned.
In July 2013, theGovernment of Odisha sanctioned ₹50 crores to kick-start the₹ 175-crore airport development project which was to be jointly executed by theAirports Authority of India (AAI) and the state government.[7] On 30 July 2014, Odisha government signed amemorandum of understanding (MoU) with theAirports Authority of India for the mentioned.[8]
In August 2018, the airport received a 4C category licence from theDirectorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), making Jharsuguda the second commercial airport in Odisha afterBiju Patnaik International Airport inBhubaneswar.[9] The airport is eligible to land A-320 type Airbus aircraft.[10]
On 22 September 2018, Prime MinisterNarendra Modi inaugurated the airport, in the presence of Odisha GovernorGaneshi Lal, Chief MinisterNaveen Patnaik, Union Petroleum and Natural Gas MinisterDharmendra Pradhan, former Union Minister of Civil AviationSuresh Prabhu and former Bargarh Lok Sabha Member Prabhas Singh.[11]
Inaugurated in September 2018, the passenger terminal is built over an area of 5,500 square metres (59,000 sq ft) with a modular design for handling 150 arriving and 150 departing passengers at a time with a scope for future expansion. The runway can land Airbus A321 and Boeing 737 aircraft.[12]
The airport was renamed after freedom fighterVeer Surendra Sai by the cabinet on 1 November 2018.[13][14][15] The interiors of the terminal building depict local handcraft such as world-famousSambalpuri sari, Sambalpuri dance, artwork and tourist destinations ofOdisha.[16]
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Alliance Air | Bhubaneswar |
| IndiGo | Bengaluru,Delhi,Kolkata,Mumbai[17] |
| Star Air | Hyderabad,[18]Lucknow,[18]Raipur[18] |
