Raja Bhoj Airport is the primary airport serving

Bhopal Bhopal (; ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh and the administrative headquarters of both Bhopal district and Bhopal division. It is known as the ''City of Lakes'' due to its various natural and artificial lakes. It i ...

, capital of the Indian state of

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (, ; meaning 'central province') is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal, and the largest city is Indore, with Jabalpur, Ujjain, Gwalior, Sagar, and Rewa being the other major cities. Madhya Pradesh is the second ...

. Named after the 10th century

Paramara The Paramara dynasty ( IAST: Paramāra) was an Indian dynasty that ruled Malwa and surrounding areas in west-central India between 9th and 14th centuries. They belonged to the Parmara clan of the Rajputs. The dynasty was established in either ...

king

Raja Bhoj Bhoja (reigned c. 1010–1055 CE) was an Indian king from the Paramara dynasty. His kingdom was centered around the Malwa region in central India, where his capital Dhara-nagara (modern Dhar) was located. Bhoja fought wars with nearly all h ...

, it is the second busiest airport in

after

Devi Ahilya Bai Holkar Airport Devi Ahilya Bai Holkar Airport is an international airport that principally serves Indore and adjacent regions in Madhya Pradesh. It is the busiest airport in Central India and is located west of Indore. According to the statistics released ...

Indore Indore () is the largest and most populous city in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It serves as the headquarters of both Indore District and Indore Division. It is also considered as an education hub of the state and is the only city to ...

in terms of passenger movement and aircraft movement. Bhopal Airport is set to get the Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility due to its advantageous central location in India. It is located in the north-western side of Bhopal, 15 kilometers away from the

Bhopal Junction Bhopal Junction railway station (station code: BPL) is a major railway junction of India and main railway station of Bhopal, the capital of the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. This station also serves as a connecting point for various ...

railway station in the city centre, and 20 kilometers away from the Rani Kamalapati (Habibganj) Railway Station in the south of the city. The airport is also near the intersection of National Highway 46 (which forms a ring-road around Bhopal) and State Highway 18, which connects Bhopal to Indore.

Development

Runway

In 2010, the length of the runway was increased to , making it possible for larger aircraft to land at Bhopal. The first direct seasonal international flight from Bhopal was to

Jeddah Jeddah ( ), also spelled Jedda, Jiddah or Jidda ( ; ar, , Jidda, ), is a city in the Hejaz region of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and the country's commercial center. Established in the 6th century BC as a fishing village, Jeddah's pro ...

, a

Hajj The Hajj (; ar, حَجّ '; sometimes also spelled Hadj, Hadji or Haj in English) is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. Hajj is a mandatory religious duty for Muslims that must be carried o ...

charter flown by

Saudia Saudia ( ar, السعودية '), formerly known as Saudi Arabian Airlines (), is the flag carrier of Saudi Arabia, based in Jeddah. The airline's main operational base is at King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah. King Khalid Int ...

on 23 October 2010 for Hajj travellers.

Renewable energy

In 2013, the airport became the first airport in the state to use solar power for running its utility grid system. A 100-kilowatt solar power plant was made operational in June 2013, with plans to install a 2-megawatt solar power plant at the airport in the future. The airport has night landing facilities, an Instrument Landing System (ILS) and CAT VII fire services.

Cargo and Logistics hub

A new Air Cargo Hub is being planned with 17 acres land sanctioned near the airport for the same, while for now, the old terminal building is being redeveloped into a Cargo Complex to increase cargo operations from the capital airport. The temporary Air Cargo Complex will be inaugurated by October 2019.

Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) Facility

Bhopal airport has been selected as one of the eight new destinations to set up Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility in India. The central location of the airport throughout the country provides ample growth and logistics prospects for the facility.

Immigration check post and International flights

In September, the DGCA started the process for granting international status to Raja Bhoj airport. In November 2019, a joint central team composed of members of the

Ministry of Home Affairs An interior ministry (sometimes called a ministry of internal affairs or ministry of home affairs) is a government department that is responsible for internal affairs. Lists of current ministries of internal affairs Named "ministry" * Ministry ...

and Ministry of Civil Aviation visited the airport to review the arrangements in starting immigration facilities, and did not find any major hurdles. With this, the airport is all set to become an immigration check post, which is a mandatory requirement for operating international flights. Bhopal airport, showing multiple aircrafts taxiing

Bhopal airport, showing multiple aircrafts taxiing

Selfie Point - Say Yes To Life

Bhopal airport established a selfie point in view of glorifying the importance of life in any difficulties.Raja Bhoj airport supported the campaign 'Say Yes To Life' runs buy eminent psychiatrist Dr Satyakant Trivedi(psychiatrist in bhopal) who is a member of suicide prevention task force, Madhya Pradesh.

Integrated terminal

The integrated terminal building worth Rs 1.35 billion was inaugurated on 28 June 2011 by the then Civil Aviation minister, Vayalar Ravi. The state government had given 400 acres of land for the construction of international terminal. The terminal building is built over an area of and has 14 check-in counters, 4 immigration counters for departures and 6 immigration counters for arrival. Bhopal Airpost Inside (3)

It also has twenty-two customs counters, 11 for arrival and 11 for departure, and six X-ray machines for security. The terminal, now, also has an eatery and a few retail stores, that were developed as part of the Airport Authority of India (AAI) scheme of master concessionaire. The terminal is connected with 4 aerobridges.

Airlines and destinations

Statistics

Accidents and incidents

* On 27 March 2021, a trainer aircraft crashed on outskirts of Bhopal airport. Shortly after take off pilot in command faced some problem in the aircraft and contacted Bhopal ATC for an emergency landing. The flight couldn't reach the runway and crashed in open field 8 km away from Bhopal airport.

References

External links

*
Raja Bhoj Airport
(

Airports Authority of India The Airports Authority of India, or AAI, is a public sector enterprise under the ownership of the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Government of India. It is responsible for creating, upgrading, maintaining, and managing civil aviation infrastruct ...

web site) {{authority control Transport in Bhopal Buildings and structures in Bhopal Airports in Madhya Pradesh World War II sites in India Year of establishment missing