This is a step towards realising the concept of sea-plane in India. The Civil Aviation Ministry on Friday cleared proposal for developing water aerodrome in the country.
The Chilika lake of Odisha, Sabarmati Riverfront and Sardar Sarovar Dam of Gujurat are the spots those the Government has selected for the project to experiment with.
Government has picked locations of tourism and religious importance for the project.
An official of the Civil Aviation Ministry on Saturday that In-principle approval had been given for the construction of Water Aerodromes in various states across the country and informed five states like Odisha, Gujurat, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Assam have been identified for developing water aerodromes. .
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) issued regulations in June this year, prescribing procedures and requirement for licensing of water aerodromes, twitted Suresh Prabhu the Civil Aviation Minister. Since there is no historical data on the market and also demand from any airlines, the project will be done as a pilot project, the minister said. The development would pave the way for operation of amphibian planes (both in land and water) to enhance air connectivity.
A sea plane what the DGCA defines is a fixed winged aeroplane which is designed for taking off and landing on water. Similarly as per DGCA water aerodrome is an area on water intended to be used either wholly or in part for arrival, departure or movement of aircraft.
An applicant seeking permission to set up water aerodrome must have the letters of clearance from the Ministries of Defense, Home, environment, shipping as well from the Airport Authority of India, local bodies and owner of the water bodies with the application form which is to be submitted at least before 90 days of intended operation date.
The qualified applicant will get a regular license for a period of two years after his successful completion of six month period of provisional license.
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