Jindal Vijaynagar Airport is a
regional airport serving
Toranagallu
Toranagallu, or Torangal, is a village in the southern state of Karnataka, India.Village code= 928100 Toranagal, Bellary, Karnataka It is located in the Sandur taluk of Bellary district in Karnataka.
Demographics
India census, Toranagallu h ...
,
Karnataka
Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...
. Because of its location near
Vidyanagar
Vidyanagar is a Locality of Hyderabad, Telangana, India. It formed Hyderabad Corporation zones, circles and wards, Ward No. 86 of Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation.
Commercial area
Vidyanagar has a large number of shopping areas. Local bu ...
Township, the airport is also known as Vidyanagar Airport. It is owned and operated by
JSW Steel
JSW Steel Limited is an Indian multinational steel producer based in Mumbai and is a flagship company of the JSW Group. After the merger of ISPAT Steel and Jindal Vijayanagar Steel Limited, JSW Steel became India's second largest private secto ...
, which operates a
steel mill
A steel mill or steelworks is an industrial plant for the manufacture of steel. It may be an integrated steel works carrying out all steps of steelmaking from smelting iron ore to rolled product, but may also be a plant where steel semi-finish ...
in Toranagallu. The name ''Jindal Vijaynagar'' comes from the company Jindal Vijaynagar Steel Ltd (JVSL), which merged to form JSW Steel in 2005.
Formerly a private landing strip for JVSL employees, the airport was upgraded to receive its first commercial flights in December 2006, serving tourism and business interests in
Bellary District
Bellary, officially known as Ballari (pronounced ), is a major district in Karnataka. It is located at north-eastern part of Karnataka. This district belongs to Kalyana-Karnataka. This district was one of the biggest districts in Karnataka unt ...
. Regional airline
TruJet
TruJet was an Indian regional airline based at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad. The airline commenced operations in July 2015 and ceased all operations in February 2022.
History
Turbo Megha Airways Private Limited was incorpo ...
started providing daily flight services from
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...
and
Bengaluru
Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...
. Later, the operations were indefinitely suspended. Passenger services has resumed again by
Alliance Air from the airport to
Bengaluru
Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...
and
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...
from 30 October 2022.
History
Jindal Vijaynagar Airport was originally a private airstrip used by
Jindal Vijaynagar Steel to transport senior employees to and from its adjacent
steel plant
A steel mill or steelworks is an industrial plant for the manufacture of steel. It may be an integrated steel works carrying out all steps of steelmaking from smelting iron ore to rolled product, but may also be a plant where steel semi-finished ...
.
In 2004, the
Government of Karnataka
The Government of Karnataka, abbreviated as, GoK, or simply Karnataka Government, is a democratically-elected state body with the governor as the ceremonial head to govern the Southwest Indian state of Karnataka. The governor who is appointed ...
agreed to allow commercial flights from the airstrip. The airport is located close to the tourist attractions of
Hampi
Hampi or Hampe, also referred to as the Group of Monuments at Hampi, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site located in Hampi (town), Hampi town, Vijayanagara district, east-central Karnataka, India.
Hampi was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire i ...
, and the State Government hoped it attract businessmen to the steel industry in Bellary.
Bellary Airport
Bellary Airport is an airport serving Bellary, a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. It was once served by Tata Airlines and Vayudoot. Bellary was a part of the first commercial flight of india which was from Karachi to Madras, flown by J.R ...
was not used as its runway was too short and narrow, and there was no room to expand it.
Air Deccan
Air Deccan is an Indian regional airline currently operating from Ahmedabad, Gujarat. It flies to a total of four destinations using Beech 1900D aircraft, as of November 2019. As of October 2021, the airline has temporarily suspended operatio ...
announced it would commence flights from
Bengaluru
Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...
on 2 October 2004;
however, the route was not launched because of technical reasons.
The State Government still required certain facilities to be installed at the airstrip, including additional navigational aids and an
air traffic control
Air traffic control (ATC) is a service provided by ground-based air traffic controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and through a given section of controlled airspace, and can provide advisory services to aircraft in non-controlled airs ...
tower.
JSW Steel began construction on a passenger terminal in 2006.
The airport was inaugurated on 3 November 2005 with
Sajjan Jindal
Sajjan Jindal (born 5 December 1959) is an Indian billionaire industrialist. He is the chairman and managing director of JSW Group of companies; diversified in steel, mining, energy, sports, infrastructure and, software business.
For 2021-202 ...
,
managing director
A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...
of JSW Steel, and several members of the State Government, including Governor
T. N. Chaturvedi, in attendance. Air Deccan conducted an inaugural flight to the airport on that day but did not begin routine operations until 1 December. The airline initially operated daily flights to Bangalore and
Goa
Goa () is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is located between the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north and Karnataka to the ...
.
Air Deccan merged with
Kingfisher Airlines
Kingfisher Airlines Limited was an airline group based in India. It was established in 2003 and started its commercial operations in 2005. Through its parent company United Breweries Group, it had a 50% stake in low-cost carrier Kingfisher Red. ...
in 2008 to form
Kingfisher Red
Kingfisher Airlines Limited was an airline group based in India. It was established in 2003 and started its commercial operations in 2005. Through its parent company United Breweries Group, it had a 50% stake in low-cost carrier Kingfisher Red. ...
, which ended flights to the airport in early 2009 because of low occupancy. Later, regional carrier
TruJet
TruJet was an Indian regional airline based at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad. The airline commenced operations in July 2015 and ceased all operations in February 2022.
History
Turbo Megha Airways Private Limited was incorpo ...
began daily flight services to
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...
and Bengaluru. However, in 2018, the services were indefinitely stopped and were not resumed again. As of October 2022,
Alliance Air has resumed daily flight services to Hyderabad and Bengaluru from 30 October 2022.
Facilities
Jindal Vijaynagar Airport has one
runway
According to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and takeoff of aircraft". Runways may be a man-made surface (often asphalt concrete, as ...
, designated 13/31, that measures .
The passenger terminal covers and contains a single
check-in
Check-in is the process whereby people announce their arrival at an office, hotel, airport, hospital, seaport or event.
Office check-in
Many offices have a reception or front office area near the entrance to greet or assist visitors arriving to a ...
desk, security lane, baggage scanner and a waiting area capable of seating 50 people.
Airlines and destinations
See also
*
New Bellary airport
New Bellary Airport is a proposed Greenfield airport, greenfield airport, which will serve the city of Bellary in Karnataka, India. As of March 2020, the survey work has been started. The runway at the existing Bellary Airport is too short and ...
References
External links
*
{{Airports in India
Airports in Karnataka
Buildings and structures in Bellary district
Transport in Bellary district
Airports with year of establishment missing