Pune Airport in India Advances 13-Acre Land Handover and Expansion Master Plan

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On September 17, Santosh Dhoke, the head of Pune Airport in India, disclosed that the handover procedure for 13 acres of Indian Air Force land required for the airport expansion is being advanced, with the relevant formalities involving the Indian Air Force, Defence Estates Officers, and a specially established committee of officials. After the completion of the land handover, the Airports Authority of India will prepare a comprehensive master plan for Pune Airport accordingly, further determining the expansion plans for aviation infrastructure such as aprons.

The Airports Authority of India's capital budget for the 2026-2027 fiscal year has separately included the apron project corresponding to this 13-acre plot in the Pune Airport construction plan, with the project name explicitly stated as "Construction of an apron on the 13 acres of Indian Air Force land proposed to be handed over to the Airports Authority of India," and its current status is under planning. Pune Airport projects also included in the plan for the same period include an international cargo complex, airport city-side development, and hangar relocation and reconstruction.

This plot of land is mainly related to the expansion of the airport's apron capacity. The previously disclosed plan proposed using the handed-over land to add 5 aircraft parking stands and 3 remote stands. Pune Airport is a civil-military joint-use airport, with the runway and core airfield area managed by the Indian Air Force. India's aeronautical information publication explicitly lists it as a "Joint User Airfield," so adding new civil aviation aprons involves land and facility handover procedures among the Indian Air Force, the Airports Authority of India, and the defence land management authorities.

The Airports Authority of India has previously, in accordance with the land handover arrangement, constructed new office and supporting facilities to replace the relevant original Indian Air Force facilities. Dhoke stated on this occasion that the relevant new facilities have been completed, but the formal handover of the 13-acre plot still requires procedures involving Defence Estates Officers and the committee of officials, so the master plan will be further prepared after the formal delivery of the land.

Pune Airport's existing expansion projects also include a new integrated terminal building. According to Airports Authority of India information, the new integrated terminal building is designed with an annual passenger handling capacity of 9 million and a peak-hour passenger handling capacity of approximately 2,300, with an approved project investment of approximately 3.5889 billion rupees. The approximately 4,075-square-meter area of the airport's old terminal building has also recently been renovated, adding 14 check-in counters and two boarding gates. It is currently awaiting final approval from the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security of India before being put into use, at which point the airport's hourly passenger handling capacity will increase by approximately 405 more.

Meanwhile, the Pune Municipal Corporation approved in July the acquisition of approximately 14,630 square meters of land for the construction of a new 30-meter-wide airport access road, with land acquisition costs of approximately 308.3 million rupees. Part of the existing access road passes through a defence area and will cease to be used after the airport expansion, so the new road project and the airport's subsequent expansion form a supporting construction relationship.