SHILLONG, July 2: Six months after a high-profile spectacle at Umiam Lake, Meghalaya’s seaplane ambitions have been grounded by a harsh market reality: not a single private operator is willing to risk an investment in the state’s latest aviation experiment.
Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma has now downplayed the initiative, clarifying that the November 2024 launch—once framed as a connectivity milestone—was merely a “technology demonstration” rather than a formal government project. The shift in narrative comes as the state admits it cannot find a service provider willing to lease or purchase the aircraft required for commercial operations.
“It was not a project at that time. The Minister was keen to demonstrate the technology,” Sangma said. “The company that manufactures the aircraft is looking for a service provider to take the plane on lease or buy it and operate the service. The government is not getting a service provider.”
The demonstration was held on November 4, 2024, during a visit by Union Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu.
At the time, the event was used to promote the idea of high-end tourism and “game-changing” connectivity under the UDAN 5.5 scheme, with proposed links between Umiam, Kaziranga, and Baljek Airport.
However, the lack of private interest exposes the fragility of the UDAN scheme in the Northeast. The project relies on Viability Gap Funding (VGF)—taxpayer subsidies designed to keep fares low—but even this has failed to entice investors.
This is a recurring trend for the state’s aviation sector. Several regional routes from Shillong to Dimapur, Silchar, and Agartala have previously folded the moment the initial “free money” from the Centre’s subsidies expired, as airlines found the routes commercially unsustainable without constant government support.
While the state had asked the Airports Authority of India to prepare a proposal for a water aerodrome at Umiam, those plans remain in limbo. For now, the De Havilland aircraft showcased in November remains a distant prospect for local commuters and tourists, leaving the government with a “tech” solution that has no takers.
