Seaplane ops from Umiam on the cards

SHILLONG, March 1: The state government is planning to have seaplane operations from the Umiam Lake to different destinations under UDAN 5.5 which intends to promote last-mile connectivity in remote regions, hilly areas and island territories.
Officials said a couple of companies have shown interest to operate from Umiam.
It was learnt that the state government is looking to connect areas such as Kaziranga in Assam and the Baljek Airport with seaplanes. It has asked the Airports Authority of India to submit a proposal to make Umiam a water aerodrome.
Under the initial versions of UDAN, the Shillong Airport was connected with Dimapur, Silchar, Agartala and other places in the Northeast. Airlines were given a subsidy but as soon as the period of it ended, most of them operating from Shillong stopped their services.
Officials said the idea behind UDAN was to allow the airline companies to fly at lower rates.
The state government has informed the Ministry of Civil Aviation about the departure of the airline companies. It was learnt the Ministry has made it clear that subsidy cannot continue forever.
The airline companies operating in Meghalaya did not wait to analyse the market and business aspects once the three-year subsidy period ended. They stopped their services indefinitely.
“These airlines should have stayed for some more time as the market was picking up,” a state government official said, adding that the government cannot give full subsidy as it will have huge financial implications.
The sudden departure of the companies left flyers from Shillong and other places of the state disappointed. They will now have to travel to Guwahati to either board a train or a flight.
“The Alliance Air was charging as low as Rs 400 for Shillong-Dimapur flight. They could have charged Rs 1,500 to Rs 1800 instead of stopping their services,” a regular flyer said.