Ratnagiri Airport is a public

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surfa ...

located in Mirjole,

Ratnagiri Ratnagiri (IAST:Ratnāgirī ; �ət̪n̪aːɡiɾiː is a port city on the Arabian Sea coast in Ratnagiri District in the southwestern part of Maharashtra, India. The district is a part of Konkan division of Maharashtra. The city is known for ...

district, in the Konkan division of the state of

Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the second-most populous state in India and the second-most populous country subdi ...

, India.

History

The airport was built in 1973 by the Public Works Department, Government of India.

Vayudoot Vayudoot ( hi, वायुदूत, Vāyudūt, messenger who rides on the wind) was a regional airline in India established on 20 January 1981 as a joint-venture between the two state-owned carriers, Indian Airlines and Air India. The airli ...

operated flights to

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the secon ...

for a short while before discontinuing due to runway repairs, shortage of aircraft capacity and paucity of resources. The airstrip was transferred to the

Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) is a project of the government of Maharashtra state in India and is the leading corporation of Maharashtra. It provides businesses with infrastructure such as land (open plot or built-up spa ...

(MIDC) for upgradation, expansion and maintenance in 1997. During the 2008 winter session of the state legislature, the Maharashtra State Cabinet decided to hand over the airport to the

Indian Coast Guard The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) is a maritime law enforcement and search and rescue agency of India with jurisdiction over its territorial waters including its contiguous zone and exclusive economic zone. The Indian Coast Guard was formally es ...

for setting up an air station. It proposed to hand over 41 hectares of airport land and another 19 hectares of MIDC land to the defence ministry . MIDC signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the

Airports Authority of India The Airports Authority of India, or AAI, is a public sector enterprise under the ownership of the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Government of India. It is responsible for creating, upgrading, maintaining, and managing civil aviation infrastruct ...

on March 5, 2019, to facilitate civil operations under the

UDAN ''Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik'' ( Hindi for "Let the common citizens of the country fly"), known by its acronym ''UDAN'' ( Hindi for "flight") is a regional airport development program of the Government of India and part of the Regional Connect ...

scheme of the Ministry of Civil Aviation. The MIDC agree to provide infrastructure for handling of aircraft and passengers such as building the passenger terminal and taxiway, while AAI would provide communication, navigation and surveillance (CNS) systems for air traffic management at the airport.

Coast Guard Air Station (CGAS) Ratnagiri

CGAS Ratnagiri was commissioned on 26 March 2011 as the first full-fledged Coast Guard air station in the state of Maharashtra. The Air station will play a crucial role in maritime surveillance and search & rescue operations.

Airlines and destinations

No scheduled commercial air service at this time. Ratnagiri Airport has been upgraded with coast guard air station, passenger terminal, night landing facilities and air traffic control tower. Commercial air services are scheduled to begin by 2022 under the Regional Connectivity Scheme of Airports Authority of India (AAI), after lengthening of current runway from 1300 m to 1800 m.Business Today - 23.08.2016 - Airport Authority of India
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References

{{Airports in India Airports in Maharashtra Ratnagiri Airports established in 1973 1973 establishments in Maharashtra