Ayodhya Airport

Ayodhya Airport (IATA: AYJ, ICAO: VEAY), officially named as Maharshi Valmiki International Airport, Ayodhyadham, is an international airport currently handling only domestic flights, serving the cities of Ayodhya and Faizabad in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. The airport is located adjacent to NH-27 and NH-330. Construction began on the airport in February 2022, and was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 30 December 2023, with flight operations beginning from 10 January 2024. In financial year 2024-25, the airport handled over 1.1 million passengers, making it one of the country's fastest-growing airports.

Infobox

Airport type

Public

Owner

Government of India

Operator

Airports Authority of India

Serves

Ayodhya, Faizabad

Location

Usroo, Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, India

Opened

30 December 2023; 23 months ago (2023-12-30)

Elevation AMSL

102 m / 335 ft

Coordinates

mw- 26°44′53″N 82°09′03″E / 26.7480337°N 82.1507812°E / 26.7480337; 82.1507812

Direction

Direction Length Surface m ft 11/29 2,250 7,381 Concrete

Passengers

1,115,016 ( 423.4%)

Aircraft movements

1,694 ( 346.1%)

Cargo tonnage

—

Tables

· Airlines and destinations

Air India Express

Airlines

Air India Express

Destinations

Bengaluru, Delhi

Akasa Air

Airlines

Akasa Air

Destinations

Delhi

Alliance Air

Airlines

Alliance Air

Destinations

Dehradun, Delhi, Hisar

IndiGo

Airlines

IndiGo

Destinations

Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Delhi, Hyderabad, Mumbai[better source needed]

Airlines	Destinations
Air India Express	Bengaluru, Delhi
Akasa Air	Delhi
Alliance Air	Dehradun, Delhi, Hisar
IndiGo	Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Delhi, Hyderabad, Mumbai[better source needed]

· Project timeline

12 August 2020

Date

12 August 2020

Details

Nand Gopal Gupta, Minister of Civil Aviation, Government of Uttar Pradesh, said Rs 525 crore has been approved and of this Rs 300 crore have been spent so far.

16 September 2020

Date

16 September 2020

Details

Airports Authority of India projected land requirement of 478.1 acres to Government of Uttar Pradesh for development of the airport in Phase - I.

10 March 2021

Date

10 March 2021

Details

Airports Authority of India sanctions Rs 242 crore to develop airport and an area of around 270 acres has been made available by Government of Uttar Pradesh.

8 April 2022

Date

8 April 2022

Details

Government of Uttar Pradesh's civil aviation department signed a lease agreement with Airports Authority of India for transfer of 317.855 acres of land. Yogi Adityanath said the remaining 86 acres land required for the airport will also be handed over soon.

6 December 2022

Date

6 December 2022

Details

The airport's terminal is 45% and the runway is 45% completed, and is on track for completion in December 2023.

2 December 2023

Date

2 December 2023

Details

It was announced that the airport's first phase of work would be completed by 15 December 2023.

12 December 2023

Date

12 December 2023

Details

It was announced that Prime Minister Narendra Modi would inaugurate the airport on 30 December 2023, and commercial flights would be started by IndiGo to Delhi and Ahmedabad from 10 January 2024.

23 December 2023

Date

23 December 2023

Details

The initial schedule for this flight was to depart from Delhi at 10:00 AM and land in Ayodhya at 11:20 AM, but according to the new schedule for the inauguration day on 30 December, the flight for Ayodhya from Delhi will now take off at 9:50 AM, with the first flight landing in Ayodhya at 11:00 AM. According to the information, after the first flight on 30 December, this flight will be operational from 10 January onwards. Subsequently, there will be daily flights from Ayodhya to Delhi at the same time, and more destinations in India starting from the same month, to be operated by Air India Express and IndiGo.

30 December 2023

Date

30 December 2023

Details

The first phase of the airport was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Date	Details	Refs.
12 August 2020	Nand Gopal Gupta, Minister of Civil Aviation, Government of Uttar Pradesh, said Rs 525 crore has been approved and of this Rs 300 crore have been spent so far.
16 September 2020	Airports Authority of India projected land requirement of 478.1 acres to Government of Uttar Pradesh for development of the airport in Phase - I.
10 March 2021	Airports Authority of India sanctions Rs 242 crore to develop airport and an area of around 270 acres has been made available by Government of Uttar Pradesh.
8 April 2022	Government of Uttar Pradesh's civil aviation department signed a lease agreement with Airports Authority of India for transfer of 317.855 acres of land. Yogi Adityanath said the remaining 86 acres land required for the airport will also be handed over soon.
6 December 2022	The airport's terminal is 45% and the runway is 45% completed, and is on track for completion in December 2023.
2 December 2023	It was announced that the airport's first phase of work would be completed by 15 December 2023.
12 December 2023	It was announced that Prime Minister Narendra Modi would inaugurate the airport on 30 December 2023, and commercial flights would be started by IndiGo to Delhi and Ahmedabad from 10 January 2024.
23 December 2023	The initial schedule for this flight was to depart from Delhi at 10:00 AM and land in Ayodhya at 11:20 AM, but according to the new schedule for the inauguration day on 30 December, the flight for Ayodhya from Delhi will now take off at 9:50 AM, with the first flight landing in Ayodhya at 11:00 AM. According to the information, after the first flight on 30 December, this flight will be operational from 10 January onwards. Subsequently, there will be daily flights from Ayodhya to Delhi at the same time, and more destinations in India starting from the same month, to be operated by Air India Express and IndiGo.
30 December 2023	The first phase of the airport was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Infobox

Tables

References