Pune-bound aircraft flies overhead daily, but city waits on the ground

Lokmat News Network

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar:

While a Pune-bound aircraft flies over the city every day, residents of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar are still waiting for the opportunity to board a direct flight to Pune. The Jalgaon–Pune flight passes through the city’s airspace daily, yet air connectivity between Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and Pune remains unavailable.

Despite being two important cities, travel between Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and Pune still depends on road or rail. A large number of citizens commute for education, business, medical treatment, court matters and government-related work. However, the six- to eight-hour journey is time-consuming and exhausting. Residents say a direct flight would reduce the travel time to about an hour.

Pune in 90 minutes from Jalgaon

At present, Fly91 Airlines operates a Jalgaon–Pune flight, enabling passengers to reach Pune in just one-and-a-half hours. However, travellers from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar continue to wait for a similar service.

Fly91 ready, but…

“We operate a daily Jalgaon–Pune service. If slots are allotted, we would be happy to start flights from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar to Mumbai and Pune. However, obtaining slots at both airports is currently difficult, which is delaying operations,” Fly91 had stated in November. The wait for slots continues.

Follow-up underway

Efforts are ongoing to start new air services from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. A request has been made to the MD and CEO of Fly91 Airlines to prioritise the Pune route, and follow-up will continue to secure slots at Pune airport, said Sunil Kothari, chairman, Civil Aviation Committee, ATDF.

Photo caption:

The Jalgaon–Pune aircraft flying over the skies of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar.