Pune Airport To Remain Closed for 14 Days – All You Need to Know

All commercial flights will remain suspended due to the closure of the airport.

Representative image. The Pune airport will remain closed from 16 October to 31 October.

(Photo: PTI)

The Pune airport will remain closed for 14 days from 16 October to 31 October as the Indian Air Force (IAF) has decided to undertake runway resurfacing work.

All scheduled operations at the airport will be cancelled. This means no flights will be able to take off or land during the period.

The closure could come as a shock to the airline traffic which was drastically affected during the lockdown and was slowly returning to normal functionality.

Here's everything you need to know.

Why is the airport being shut?

The IAF had announced earlier that the resurfacing work will be undertaken during April-May, which was postponed to later this month.

According to a NOTAM (notice to airmen) issued by the IAF, runway will be closed from 15 October 8 pm to 30 October 8 am for works.

Pune Airport is part of the IAF base operating from Lohegaon, the function of which is to provide training to the IAF pilots for sortie operations.

The civil enclave controls commercial flights, but the airport is primarily used by the IAF, which also control its air traffic and runway. Pune is in the process of building its own international airport at Purandar.

Will the passengers get a refund?

The passengers will get a full refund because the flight cancellation was due to an operational reason, said a Times of India report. However, the airlines are not responsible for any rescheduling guarantee under these circumstances.

Which is the closest airport from Pune for an alternative?

Passengers can book their tickets from Mumbai to avoid any further inconvenience.