Goa airport in trouble
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Following a long debate over the proposed new airport in the north at Mopa and the existing one at Dabholim, the state had recently asked the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) to examine if these two could be used together.
Now the Montreal-based global agency has submitted its report to the state, clearly saying that this will not be financially viable, The Times of India reported.
”Currently Dabholim handles 2.2 passengers annually. According to ICAO estimates, this figure will rise to 4 million and 6 million by 2014 and 2022, respectively. A totally private airport will require a threshold limit of 12 million departing passengers and 24 million total traffic,” the report said.
So even with a high traffic growth projection, the US$325-million Mopa airport may not be financially viable if it is fully funded by a private player.
The newspaper said while Goa desperately needs a better airport as the existing defence airbase at Dabholim has both night restrictions and inadequate infrastructure, decisions have not bene made to frequent change of state governments.
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