Vayudoot () was a regional airline in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

established on 20 January 1981 as a joint venture between the two state-owned carriers,

Indian Airlines Indian Airlines was a state-owned airline in India that later became a division of Air India Limited before ultimately ceasing operations. It was based in Delhi and focused primarily on domestic routes, along with several international servic ...

and

Air India Air India is the flag carrier of India with its main hub at Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi, and secondary hubs at Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai, alo ...

. The airline was headquartered at

New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...

Safdarjung Airport Safdarjung Airport is an airport in New Delhi, India, in the neighbourhood of the same name. Established during the British Raj as Willingdon Airfield, it started operations as an aerodrome in 1929, when it was India's second airport after the ...

and was originally conceived to serve

Northeast India Northeast India, officially the North Eastern Region (NER), is the easternmost region of India representing both a geographic and political Administrative divisions of India, administrative division of the country. It comprises eight States and ...

. The regional hub for the region was

Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...

and the airline flew to close to 30 destinations in this challenging area. Many of the airfields saw the resumption of commercial flights and

fixed-wing A fixed-wing aircraft is a heavier-than-air aircraft, such as an airplane, which is capable of flight using Lift (force), aerodynamic lift. Fixed-wing aircraft are distinct from rotorcraft, rotary-wing aircraft (in which a Helicopter rotor, r ...

aircraft after many decades of their absence. The airline consistently lost money since its formation due to low occupancy. The government, struggling to find a solution to Vayudoot's continuing financial problems, considered both closure and

privatisation Privatization (rendered privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation w ...

as options, since the carrier's route and fleet structure made the operation unprofitable.

History

In the late 1970s, the Indian government and its two airlines became aware of the increasing number of potential air travelers in many small towns around the nation. Vayudoot has started to expand India's domestic air transport network on a very large scale, with a completely new network designed to feed Indian Airlines' network at state capitals and other big cities. Therefore, all Vayudoot destinations, apart from its hubs, were completely new, not covered by existing Indian Airlines services. Vayudoot Dornier 228

Vayudoot began operations on 26 January 1981, India's Republic Day, in the remote north-east of the country, linking towns in states such as Assam, Manipur and Tripura. A journey such as one from Lilabari,

North Lakhimpur North Lakhimpur ( ) is a city and a municipal board in Lakhimpur district in the Indian state of Assam, about northeast of Guwahati. It is the district headquarters of Lakhimpur district. North Lakhimpur is also the name of the subdivision o ...

, in

Assam Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...

state to Ziro in the neighbouring state of

Arunachal Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in northeast India. It was formed from the North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) region, and India declared it as a state on 20 February 1987. Itanagar is its capital and la ...

could take a few days during bad weather, braving hazards such as avalanches in the hills and flooding in lower lying areas. The flight, on the other hand was as short as 12 minutes, though weather could cause disruptions because this was flying where visual contact had to be maintained with the ground/terrain in the absence of reliable aids for navigation. The weather caused poor visibility on account of heavy rains and low clouds and/or fog and could at times result in waterlogged runways. Many runways were unpaved strips, and facilities at these airports were very limited. Its first aircraft were two F27s leased from Indian Airlines and linked 20 destinations. To keep costs low, Vayudoot did not serve in-flight meals and contracted out its ground handling services to local agents at all smaller destinations. Vayudoot supplied basic ground-handling equipment to the agents and trained their staff. Vayudoot started with retired flight crew of Indian Airlines to fly the HS-748 and F27 aircraft. As

Dornier 228 The Dornier 228 is a twin-turboprop STOL utility aircraft, designed and first manufactured by Dornier GmbH (later DASA Dornier, Fairchild-Dornier) from 1981 until 1998. 245 were built in Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany. In 1983, Hindustan Aeronautics ...

were bought or leased, new pilots were recruited. The same held for the core engineering team, which comprised almost all of ex-Indian Airlines engineers. Vayuf27

Vayudoot became a public company in February 1983, owned jointly by Indian Airlines and Air India. At this time, its load factors were less than 50 per cent. Vayudoot's first Dornier 228 began service in 1985 on the Delhi-Raebareli-Lucknow route. A total of ten Dornier 228s were ordered by Vayudoot. Subsequently, the services of Vayudoot were extended to other regions, charting 100 stations in the country earning the sobriquet "worlds fastest growing airline". Vayudoot quickly established hubs at Bombay (now Mumbai), Delhi, Madras (now Chennai), and

Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...

. Sub-bases were, at some points of time, established at

Bhopal Bhopal (; ISO 15919, ISO: Bhōpāl, ) is the capital (political), 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 ...

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (; ; ) is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and the largest city is Indore, Indore. Other major cities includes Gwalior, Jabalpur, and Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, Sagar. Madhya Pradesh is the List of states and union te ...

and

Guwahati Guwahati () the largest city of the Indian state of Assam, and also the largest metropolis in northeastern India. Dispur, the capital of Assam, is in the circuit city region located within Guwahati and is the seat of the Government of Assam. Th ...

. The lack of adequate traffic to sustain operations on all these routes adversely affected the company's financial performance. After a review, the number of stations on the operational network was brought down to 48 on 31 March 1991. Vayudoot was then focused on consolidating its operations and rationalising its fare structure rather than embark on large-scale expansion of its network. Its operations were again primarily restricted to the Northeastern region and other inaccessible areas. Vayudoot also operated an Agro Aviation Division which was involved in aerial spraying operations, seeding and afforestation operations. Vayudoot's financial performance continued to deteriorate which finally led to the dissolution of the company and merger of its assets into Indian Airlines in 1993. On 1 April 1997 its flight operations were transferred to Alliance Air, which is a newly formed subsidiary of

since 1996 and its employees were absorbed into

and

Night Air Mail Service

In 1985, Vayudoot started operating the Inland Night Air Mail Service (NAMS), a domestic overnight

airmail Airmail (or air mail) is a mail transport service branded and sold on the basis of at least one leg of its journey being by air. Airmail items typically arrive more quickly than surface mail, and usually cost more to send. Airmail may be th ...

service for the

Indian Postal Service The Department of Posts, d/b/a India Post, is an Indian public sector postal system statutory body headquartered in New Delhi, India. It is an organisation under the Ministry of Communications. It is the most widely distributed postal system in ...

. The facility of this Vayudoot airmail service was also extended to a private courier. Every night, flights from the major metropolitan cities of India converged upon Nagpur Airport in the centre of the country. Usually the routes were: * Delhi-Jaipur-Nagpur * Calcutta-Varanasi-Nagpur * Bombay-Nagpur * Madras-Hyderabad-Nagpur Despite a successful run of over a year, the service was discontinued because of demanding nature of the operation. The unpressurized

was limited to an altitude of 10,000 ft. The aircraft was dependent on ground-based en route navigational facilities and these were few and far between on many of the legs. Flying exclusively at night and negotiating violent storms called Kal baisakhi, followed by the

Monsoon A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in Atmosphere of Earth, atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annu ...

and in the absence of

Radio navigation Radio navigation or radionavigation is the application of radio waves to geolocalization, determine a position of an object on the Earth, either the vessel or an obstruction. Like radiolocation, it is a type of Radiodetermination-satellite servi ...

aids it became advisable to discontinue the operation. VayuPilotWings

During the early 1990s, Vayudoot used leased aircraft from

Royal Nepal Airlines Nepal Airlines Corporation (), formerly known as Royal Nepal Airlines (), is the flag carrier of Nepal. Founded in 1958, it is the oldest airline of the country. Out of its main base at Tribhuvan International Airport, Kathmandu, the airline ope ...

and

Ariana Afghan Airlines Ariana Afghan Airlines Co. Ltd. () also known simply as Ariana, is the flag carrier and largest airline of Afghanistan. Founded in 1955, Ariana is state owned and the oldest airline in the country. The company has its main base at Kabul Interna ...

to run night metro flights between New Delhi, Bombay and Bangalore. Aircraft such as the

Boeing 757 The Boeing 757 is an American Narrow-body aircraft, narrow-body airliner designed and built by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The then-named 7N7, a twinjet successor for the trijet Boeing 727, 727, received its first orders in August 1978. The ...

and

Boeing 727 The Boeing 727 is an American Narrow-body aircraft, narrow-body airliner that was developed and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. After the heavier Boeing 707, 707 quad-jet was introduced in 1958, Boeing addressed the demand for shorter ...

were used.

Destinations

Vayudoot flew to over 100 destinations during its existence. Vayudoot Destinations

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...

Cuddapah Kadapa is a city in the southern part of Andhra Pradesh, India. It is located in the Rayalaseema region, and is the district headquarters of YSR Kadapa district. It is located south of the Penna River. The city is surrounded on three sides b ...

– Cuddapah Airport **

–

Begumpet Airport Begumpet Airport is an airport that serves Hyderabad in Telangana, India. It is located in Begumpet and caters to general and military aviation. The airport is home to the Begumpet Air Force Station of the Indian Air Force. Begumpet was built ...

Puttaparthi Puttaparthi (IAST: ''Puṭṭaparthy'') is a municipality and district headquarters of Sri Sathya Sai district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is located in Puttaparthi mandal of Puttaparthi revenue division. The original name of Put ...

–

Sri Sathya Sai Airport Sri Sathya Sai Airport is located at Puttaparthi in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India. The airport is named after Sathya Sai Baba, a spiritual guru and philanthropist. It is a small airport with facilities for chartered flights rather than ...

Rajamahendravaram Rajahmundry ( ), officially Rajamahendravaram, is a city in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and district headquarters of East Godavari district. It is the fifth most populated city in the state. During British rule, the district of Rajahmu ...

– Rajamahendravaram Airport **

Ramagundam Ramagundam is a city under Ramagundam Municipal Corporation, municipal corporation in Peddapalli district of the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Telangana. It is the most populous city in the district and falls under t ...

– Ramagundam Airport **

Tirupati Tirupati () is a city in the Indian States and territories of India, state of Andhra Pradesh and serves as the administrative headquarters of Tirupati district. It is known for its significant religious and cultural heritage, being home to th ...

–

Tirupati Airport Tirupati Airport is an international airport serving Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh, India. It is situated in Renigunta, a suburb of Tirupati. It is away from National Highway 71 (previously NH-205), from Tirupati and from Venkateswara Temple ...

Vijayawada Vijayawada ( ), formerly known by its colonial name Bezawada, is the second largest city and a major commercial hub in the Andhra Pradesh state of India. The city forms an integral part of the Andhra Pradesh Capital Region and is situated on th ...

–

Vijayawada Airport Vijayawada Airport , officially known as Vijayawada International Airport, is an international airport serving Vijayawada, the second-largest city of the state of Andhra Pradesh, the under-development capital city of the state, Amaravati a ...

Visakhapatnam Visakhapatnam (; List of renamed places in India, formerly known as Vizagapatam, and also referred to as Vizag, Visakha, and Waltair) is the largest and most populous metropolitan city in the States and union territories of India, Indian stat ...

–

Visakhapatnam Airport Visakhapatnam Airport , officially known as Visakhapatnam International Airport, is a customs airport serving the city of Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, India. It also operates as a civil enclave on the Indian Navy airbase, INS ''Dega''. It ...

Warangal Warangal () is a city in the Indian state of Telangana and the district headquarters of Warangal district. It is the second largest city in Telangana with a population of 811,844 per 2011 Census of India, and spreading over an . Warangal serv ...

–

Warangal Airport Warangal Airport also Mamnoor Airport is located at Mamnoor, Warangal in the state of Telangana, India. The largest airport at the time, remained in service until 1981. The Government of Telangana is trying to revive the airport with some inst ...

** Along –

Along Airport Along Airport also known as Aalo Airport is located at Along in the state of Arunachal Pradesh, India. The Government of Arunachal Pradesh handed over the airstrip to the Ministry of Defence in June 2009. The government has proposed to ope ...

Daporijo Daporijo is a census town in the Upper Subansiri district in the northeastern Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh. Demographics As of the 2001 India census, Daporijo had a population of 15,468. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 4 ...

– Daporijo Airport **

Pasighat Pasighat is the headquarters of East Siang district in the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh. Situated at the eastern foothills of the Himalayas at above mean sea level, Pasighat is Arunachal's oldest town. The Government of India included Pas ...

– Pasighat Airport ** Tezu– Tezu Airport ** Ziro – Ziro Airport *

Dibrugarh Dibrugarh () is a city in the Indian state of Assam, located 435 kms east of the state capital Dispur. It serves as the headquarters of the Dibrugarh district in Upper Assam. Dibrugarh also serves as the headquarters of the Sonowal Kach ...

–

Dibrugarh Airport Dibrugarh Airport , (officially, Dr. Bhupen Hazarika Airport) is a domestic airport serving the city of Dibrugarh, Assam, India. It is located at Mohanbari, which is situated east from the city centre. The airport covers an area of 386 acres. ...

–

Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport , or Guwahati Airport, is an international airport serving the List of cities in Assam, largest city of Assam and the capital of the state within it, Guwahati and Dispur, in India. It is the pri ...

Jorhat Jorhat ( /) is a major city in Upper Assam division, Upper Assam and among the fastest growing urban centres in the state of Assam in India. Etymology Jorhat ("jor" means twin and "hat" means market) means two hats or mandis - "Masorhaat" and ...

–

Jorhat Airport Jorhat Airport , also known as Rowriah Airport, is a domestic airport serving the cities of Jorhat and Golaghat in Assam, India. It is located at Rowriah, situated south-west from Jorhat and north-east from Golaghat. History It was establi ...

–

Lilabari Airport Lilabari Airport , also known as North Lakhimpur Airport, is a domestic airport serving the city of North Lakhimpur in Assam, India. It is located at Lilabari, north from the city centre. History The Lilabari airport project in Lakhimpur bega ...

Dhubri Dhubri is a city and the administrative centre of Dhubri district in the Indian state of Assam. It is an old town on the bank of the Brahmaputra River, with historical significance. In 1883, the town was first constituted as a municipal board un ...

–

Rupsi Airport Rupsi Airport is a domestic airport serving the cities of Dhubri and Kokrajhar, Assam, India. It is located at Rupsi, north from the Dhubri city centre.

Silchar Silchar is a city and the headquarters of the Cachar district of the state of Assam, India. It is second largest city of Assam after Guwahati in terms of population and GDP. It is also administrative capital of Barak Valley division. It is locate ...

–

Silchar Airport Silchar Airport is a domestic airport serving city of Silchar, Assam, India. It is located at Kumbhirgram, on the foothills of the Barail Range, 29 km (18 mi) from the city centre. It was built by the British as Royal Air Force, RAF ...

Tezpur Tezpur () is a city in Sonitpur district, Assam state, India. Tezpur is located on the banks of the river Brahmaputra, northeast of Guwahati, and is the largest of the north bank cities. History Tezpur was under the rule of the Koch dynasty ...

–

Tezpur Airport Tezpur Airport , also known as Salonibari Air Force Station, is a domestic airport and an Indian Air Force Station serving Tezpur, Assam, India. It is located in Salonibari, situated from the city centre. The airport covers an area of 22 acre ...

Daman and Diu Daman and Diu (; ) was a union territory in northwestern India. With an area of , it was the smallest administrative subdivision of India on the mainland. The territory comprised two districts, Daman and Diu Island, geographically separated ...

** Diu –

Diu Airport Diu Airport is a domestic airport serving Diu in the union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, India. Besides Diu, it also serves the neighbouring areas of Gujarat, including Veraval and Jafrabad. It is the only airport ...

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

Indira Gandhi International Airport Indira Gandhi International Airport is the primary international airport serving New Delhi, the capital of India, and the National Capital Region (NCR). The airport, spread over an area of ,

Gujarat Gujarat () is a States of India, state along the Western India, western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the List of states and union territories ...

Ahmedabad Ahmedabad ( ), also spelled Amdavad (), is the most populous city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ahmedabad district and the seat of the Gujarat High Court. Ahmedabad's population of 5,570,585 ...

–

Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport Ahmedabad Airport, officially Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport , is an international airport in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India. It is named after Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the first Deputy Prime Minister of India. The airport is the b ...

Baroda Vadodara (), also known as Baroda, is a city situated on the banks of the Vishwamitri River in the Indian state of Gujarat. It serves as the administrative headquarters of the Vadodara district. The city is named for its abundance of banyan ...

–

Civil Airport Harni Vadodara Airport is a customs airport and Indian Air Force base serving the city of Vadodara in Gujarat, India. It is located in the suburb of Harni, northeast of Vadodara. It is the third-busiest airport in Gujarat, after Ahmedabad and S ...

Jamnagar Jamnagar () is a city and the headquarters of Jamnagar district in the Indian state of Gujarat. The city lies just to the south of the Gulf of Kutch, some west of the state capital, Gandhinagar. The city was the capital of Nawanagar State, Na ...

– Jamnagar Airport **

Kandla Kandla is a census town in the Kutch district of Gujarat state in Western India, near the city of Gandhidham. It occupies on the coast of Gulf of Cutch along the banks of the Kandla Creek. According to the 2011 Census of India, Kandla is t ...

–

Kandla Airport Kandla Airport is a domestic airport serving the cities of Kandla and Gandhidham in Gujarat, India. It is located in Anjar, northwest of Kandla and northwest of Gandhidham. History The airport was built in the late 1950s. Indian Airlines ...

Keshod Keshod is a town and a Taluka in Junagadh District. Infrastructure Keshod Airport serves Junagadh district, which was used by Nawab of Junagadh Muhammad Mahabat Khanji III Sir Muhammad Mahabat Khanji III Rasul Khanji, (2 August 1898 � ...

– Keshod Airport **

Porbandar Porbandar is a city and the headquarters of Porbandar district in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is the birthplace of Mahatma Gandhi and Sudama. It was the former capital of the Porbandar State, Porbandar princely state. Porbandar and Chhaya, ...

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Porbandar Airport Porbandar Airport is a domestic airport and an Indian Navy base serving the city of Porbandar in the state of Gujarat, India. It is a crucial gateway for tourism and economic activities in the city and its adjoining areas, with the city renown ...

Rajkot Rajkot () is the fourth-largest city in the Indian state of Gujarat Gujarat () is a States of India, state along the Western India, western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the ...

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Rajkot Airport Rajkot Airport is a public airport serving the city of Rajkot, Gujarat, India. It is operated by the Airports Authority of India (AAI). It was the 4th busiest airport in Gujarat after Ahmedabad, Surat and Vadodara until all scheduled commerci ...

Surat Surat (Gujarati Language, Gujarati: ) is a city in the western Indian States and territories of India, state of Gujarat. The word Surat directly translates to ''face'' in Urdu, Gujarati language, Gujarati and Hindi. Located on the banks of t ...

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Surat Airport Surat Airport is an international airport serving Surat, Gujarat, India. It is located in Magdalla, situated 12 km (6.4 mi) from the city centre. It has a total area of 770 acres (312 ha) and is the second busiest airport in Gujarat ...

Haryana Haryana () is a States and union territories of India, state located in the northern part of India. It was carved out after the linguistic reorganisation of Punjab, India, Punjab on 1 November 1966. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with les ...

Chandigarh Chandigarh is a city and union territory in northern India, serving as the shared capital of the states of Punjab and Haryana. Situated near the foothills of the Shivalik range of Himalayas, it borders Haryana to the east and Punjab in the ...

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Chandigarh Airport Chandigarh Airport , officially Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport, is an international airport serving the union territory of Chandigarh, India. The airport is located in Jhiurheri, Mohali, Punjab and shares space with the Indian Air F ...

Hisar Hissar () means fort or castle in Arabic, with variants adopted into Persian (hesar, hessar) and Turkish (hisar). Hissar, Hisar and Hesar may refer to: Places Asia (South and Central) India *Hisar (city), a city in Haryana **Hisar Airport in Hi ...

– Hisar Airport *

Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; Sanskrit: ''himācāl prādes;'' "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a States and union territories of India, state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen Indian Himalayan ...

Dharamsala Dharamshala (, ; also spelled Dharamsala) is a town in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. It serves as the winter capital of the state and the administrative headquarters of the Kangra district since 1855. The town also hosts the Tibetan ...

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Gaggal Airport Kangra-Gaggal Airport , officially known as Kangra Airport, is a domestic airport serving areas of Kangra including Dharamshala, the winter capital of Himachal Pradesh, India. It is located at Gaggal, which is situated from the city, from ...

Kullu Kullu () is a municipal council town that serves as the administrative headquarters of the Kullu district of the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. It is located on the banks of the Beas River in the Kullu Valley about north of the airport ...

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Bhuntar Airport Bhuntar is a town and a nagar panchayat in Kullu district in the state of Himachal Pradesh, India. It is just 11 km from Kullu town, and lies along National Highway 3. The Kullu-Manali Airport is located in Bhuntar. The next major settlement ...

Shimla Shimla, also known as Simla ( the official name until 1972), is the capital and the largest city of the northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. In 1864, Shimla was declared the summer capital of British India. After independence, the city ...

– Shimla Airport *

Karnataka Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...

Bangalore Bengaluru, also known as Bangalore (List of renamed places in India#Karnataka, its official name until 1 November 2014), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the southern States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kar ...

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HAL Airport HAL Airport is an airport that serves Bengaluru, the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Located about 12 km east of the city centre, it has one runway and operates 24/7. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), a state-owned defence c ...

Belgaum Belgaum (Kannada ISO 15919, ISO: ''Bēḷagāma'', ), officially known as Belagavi (also Belgaon), is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka located near its northern western border in the Western Ghats. It is the administrative headquarters ...

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Belgaum Airport Belgaum Airport , also known as Belagavi Airport, is a domestic airport serving Belgaum, Karnataka. The current integrated terminal building was inaugurated by the then Minister of Civil Aviation, Ashok Gajapathi Raju on 14 September 2017. Ne ...

Bellary Ballari (formerly Bellary) is a city in the Ballari district in state of Karnataka, India. Ballari houses many steel plants such as JSW Vijayanagar, one of the largest in Asia. Ballari district is also known as the ‘Steel city of South Ind ...

– Bellary Airport **

Mangalore Mangaluru (), formerly called Mangalore ( ), is a major industrial port city in the Indian state of Karnataka and on the west coast of India. It is located between the Laccadive Sea and the Western Ghats about west of Bengaluru, the st ...

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Mangalore Airport Mangalore International Airport (also known as Mangaluru International Airport) is an international airport serving the coastal city of Mangalore in the state of Karnataka, India. It is one of only two international airports in the state, t ...

Hubli Hubli (officially Hubballi) is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. The twin cities Hubli–Dharwad form the second largest city in the state by area and population and the largest city in North Karnataka. Hubli is in Dharwad district of ...

– Hubli Airport ** Hassan – Hassan Airport **

Raichur Raichur, also pronounced as Rāyachūru (formerly Raichore), is a city and headquarters of eponymous Raichur district in the Karnataka state of India. Raichur, located between Krishna River, Krishna and Tungabhadra rivers. History Ancient His ...

– Raichur Airport **

Mysore Mysore ( ), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of Mysore district and Mysore division. As the traditional seat of the Wadiyar dynasty, the city functioned as the capital of the ...

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Mysore Airport Mysore Airport , also known as Mandakalli Airport, is a domestic airport serving Mysore in Karnataka, India. It is located south of the city in the village of Mandakalli and is owned and operated by the Airports Authority of India. The Prince ...

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

Calicut Kozhikode (), also known as Calicut, is a city along the Malabar Coast in the state of Kerala in India. Known as the City of Spices, Kozhikode is listed among the City of Literature, UNESCO's Cities of Literature. It is the nineteenth large ...

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Calicut Airport Kozhikode International Airport , also known as Calicut International Airport (locally referred to as Karipur Airport), is an international airport serving the cities of Kozhikode and Malappuram in the state of Kerala, India. It also serves ot ...

Kochi Kochi ( , ), List of renamed Indian cities and states#Kerala, formerly known as Cochin ( ), is a major port city along the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea. It is part of the Ernakulam district, district of Ernakulam in the ...

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Willingdon Island Willingdon Island is the largest artificial island in India, which forms part of the city of Kochi, in the state of Kerala. Much of the present Willingdon Island was claimed from the Vembanadu Lake, filling in dredged soil around a previous ...

Airport (now

INS Garuda INS Garuda , is an Indian naval air station located in Kochi, in the state of Kerala. Commissioned on 11 May 1953, it is the oldest operating air station of the Indian Navy. The air station is adjacent to INS Venduruthy and the headquarters of ...

) **

Trivandrum Thiruvananthapuram ( ), also known as Trivandrum, is the capital city of the Indian state of Kerala. As of 2011, the Thiruvananthapuram Municipal Corporation had a population of 957,730 over an area of 214.86 sq. km, making it the largest and ...

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Trivandrum Airport Thiruvananthapuram International Airport is an international airport that serves Thiruvananthapuram, the capital city of Kerala, India. Established in 1932, it is the first airport in the state of Kerala and the fifth international airport of ...

Lakshadweep Lakshadweep () is a union territory of India. It is an archipelago of 36 islands divided into three island subgroups: the Amindivi Islands in the north, the Laccadive Islands (separated from Amindivi roughly by the 11th parallel north), and th ...

Agatti Agatti Island () is a 7.6 km long island, situated on a coral atoll called Agatti atoll in the Union Territory of Lakshadweep, India. It is west of the city of Kochi. Geography Agatti is located about 364 km off Kannur, 394 km ...

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Agatti Aerodrome Agatti Airport is a regional airport serving the union territory of Lakshadweep, India. It is located at the southern end of Agatti Island, and is the sole airstrip in the archipelago, which lies off the west coast of mainland India. Histor ...

– Raja Bhoj Airport **

Guna Guna may refer to: People * Guna people, Indigenous peoples of Panama and Colombia Philosophy * Guṇa, a Hindu philosophical concept * Guṇa (Jainism), a philosophical concept Places * Guna district, in Madhya Pradesh, India ** Guna, Indi ...

– Guna Airport **

Gwalior Gwalior (Hindi: , ) is a major city in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh; It is known as the Music City of India having oldest Gwalior gharana, musical gharana in existence. It is a major sports, cultural, industrial, and political c ...

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Gwalior Airport Gwalior Airport , also known as Rajmata Vijayaraje Scindia Terminal, is a domestic airport managed and operated by the Airports Authority of India serving the city of Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, India. It is located in Maharajpura, 10 km (6 mi) no ...

Indore Indore (; ISO 15919, ISO: , ) is the largest and most populous Cities in India, city in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. The commercial capital of the state, it has been declared as the List of cleanest cities in India, cleanest city of In ...

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Devi Ahilyabai Holkar Airport Devi Ahilya Bai Holkar Airport is an international airport serving the city of Indore, Madhya Pradesh, India. It is the busiest airport in Central India and is located west of Indore. According to the statistics released by the Airports Autho ...

Jabalpur Jabalpur, formerly Jubbulpore, is a city situated on the banks of Narmada River in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India. It is the 3rd-largest urban agglomeration of the state and the 38th-largest of the country. Jabalpur is the administrative h ...

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Jabalpur Airport Jabalpur Airport , also known as Dumna Airport, is a domestic airport serving the city of Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, India. It is located at Dumna, east of the city. It is the third busiest airport in Madhya Pradesh after Devi Ahilya Bai Holka ...

Khajuraho Khajuraho () is a city, near Chhatarpur in Chhatarpur district of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. One of the most popular tourist destinations in India, Khajuraho has the country's largest group of medieval Hindu and Jain temples, famous ...

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Khajuraho Airport Khajuraho Airport is a domestic airport that serves the cities of Khajuraho and Chhatarpur in Madhya Pradesh, India. The airport is 3 km south of Khajuraho, 4 km from Khajuraho railway station, 40 km from Chhatarpur and 50&nb ...

** Rewa – Rewa Airport **

Satna Satna is a city in the Indian States and territories of India, state of Madhya Pradesh. It serves as the headquarters of Satna district. It is 7th largest city and List of cities in Madhya Pradesh by population, 8th most populous city of the s ...

– Satna Airport **

Ujjain Ujjain (, , old name Avantika, ) or Ujjayinī is a city in Ujjain district of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It is the fifth-largest city in Madhya Pradesh by population and is the administrative as well as religious centre of Ujjain ...

– Ujjain Airport ** Bilaspur – Bilaspur (Chakarbhata) Airport **

Raipur Raipur ( ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Chhattisgarh. Raipur is also the administrative headquarters of Raipur district and Raipur division, and the largest city of the state. It was a part of Madhya Pradesh before the state of Chh ...

– Raipur (Mana) Airport *

Maharashtra Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...

**Akola – Akola Airport **Aurangabad, Maharashtra, Aurangabad – Aurangabad Airport **Kolhapur – Kolhapur Airport **Mumbai – Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport **Nagpur – Nagpur Airport **Nanded – Nanded Airport **Nashik – Gandhinagar Airport **Pune – Pune International Airport **Ratnagiri – Ratnagiri Airport **Solapur – Solapur Airport *Meghalaya **Shillong – Barapani Airport *Mizoram **Aizawl – Lengpui Airport *Odisha **Bhubaneswar– Bhubaneswar Airport **Jeypore – Jeypore Airport **Rourkela – Rourkela Airport *Puducherry (city), Puducherry **Pondicherry (city), Puducherry – Pondicherry Airport, Puducherry Airport *Punjab, India, Punjab **Amritsar – Amritsar airport **Bhatinda – Bathinda Airport **Ludhiana – Ludhiana Airport **Pathankot – Pathankot Airport *Rajasthan **Jaipur – Jaipur International Airport **Jaisalmer – Jaisalmer Airport *Tamil Nadu **Chennai – Chennai International Airport **Coimbatore – Coimbatore International Airport **Neyveli – Neyveli Airport **Thanjavur – Thanjavur Air Force Station **Thoothukudi – Tuticorin Airport **Salem, Tamil Nadu, Salem – Salem Airport (India), Salem Airport **Madurai – Madurai Airport **Tiruchirappalli, Thiruchchirapalli – Tiruchirappalli International Airport **Vellore – Vellore Airport **Hosur – Hosur Aerodrome **Ulundurpettai – Ulundurpettai airport **Karaikudi – Chettinad airport *Tripura **Agartala – Agartala Airport *Uttarakhand **Dehra Dun – Jolly Grant Airport **Pantnagar – Pantnagar Airport *West Bengal **Cooch Behar – Cooch Behar Airport **Kolkata – Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport

Accident/Incidents

The airline had four safety incidents during its operational history, including two crashes which resulted in a total of 45 fatalities. *22 September 1988 – A Dornier 228 ''(registered VT-EJT)'' crashed in Aurungabad and was written off due to a heavy landing. None of the passengers or crew were injured. *23 September 1988 – A Fokker F27 ''(registered VT-DMB)'' hit a high lift catering truck during taxi at Calcutta. The truck hit the left hand outer wing of the F27. Part of the wing and half of the aileron were cut away. The three catering truck occupants were seriously injured in the event. None of the 39 passengers or 4 crew were injured. *19 October 1988 – A Fokker F27 ''(registered VT-DMC)'' was on a scheduled flight from Silchar to Guwahati when it disappeared on approach to the airport. The aircraft undershot the runway in inclement weather. All 31 passengers and 3 crew died in the crash. *23 September 1989 – A Dornier 228 ''(registered VT-EJF)'' was on a scheduled flight from Pune to Hyderabad when the aircraft entered a steep descent and crashed into the reservoir behind the Ujani Dam. Isolated thunderstorms with localised heavy rain were reported in the area. It is believed that the aircraft entered a microburst and stalled. The aircraft was said to be in a steep dive before it crashed into the reservoir. All 8 passengers and 3 crew died in the crash.

Fleet

As of March 1991, Vayudoot's passenger services had a total fleet of 23 aircraft. *10 Dornier 228, Dornier 228-201 *8 Hawker Siddeley HS 748, H.S. 748 "Avro" *5 Fokker 27, Fokker F27-100 "Friendship" Its Agro Aviation Division had a fleet of one helicopter and sixteen aircraft.

References

External links

Airline Timetable Images: Vayudoot, India
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vayudoot Defunct airlines of India Airlines established in 1981 Airlines disestablished in 1997 Indian companies disestablished in 1997 Indian companies established in 1981 Companies based in Delhi 1981 establishments in Delhi