Pune airport to remain closed for fortnight

Pune airport will remain closed for a fortnight from Tuesday for repairs to the runway.

The Lohegoan airport, also an Indian Air Force base, requires major repairs in its 1.2-km runway. The repair work has been on since September, leaving the airport functional only from 10.30 am to 6.30 pm.

Now the airport will remain fully closed till Feb 26, as repair works for the middle part of the runway will be taken up, officials said.

The airport terminal manager said the increase in the number of flights had ruined the runway completely.

As many as 54 flights a day take off and land here and on an average 7,000 passengers use the airport every day. Private Airlines such as Jet Airways have announced daily shuttle services between Pune and Mumbai, the nearest major airport.