Pune: A long-pending proposal to upgrade the Baramati airstrip, the site of multiple aviation accidents over the last few years, has finally been sanctioned, with work on runway recarpeting and installation of night lights set to start soon, senior officials from Maharashtra Airport Development Company Ltd (MADC) told TOI on Monday.“First phase of the works will cost around Rs 70 crore,” said Deepak Kapoor, MADC’s vice-chairperson-cum-managing director. “This phase includes runway recarpeting, improved lighting and the construction of a boundary wall, among other works,” he said.News of the upgrade comes six months after the Jan 28 plane crash at the airstrip, which claimed the lives of former deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar and four others. Three months before his death, Pawar had asked MIDC to transfer a DPR it had prepared, for night landings at the airstrip, to the MADC for execution. It was among the last major proposals he had made for the airstrip before his tragic crash there, one of three incidents this year alone. The most recent one was on Sunday (Aug 9), when a four-seater Cessna, on a training flight, veered off the runway.Kapoor said MADC’s first phase of works will also improve emergency response at the airstrip. “We now have a fire engine stationed there. We are vigorously working to improve the facility,” he said.Aviation experts said it was time the incident-prone airstrip was turned into a safer aviation hub, with modern amenities. “It should be upgraded from uncontrolled to a controlled aerodrome with full ATC services, preferably night landing facilities, modern navigation aids and reliable weather reporting,” said aviation analyst Dhairyashil Vandekar. He added that proper runway edge lighting, perimeter boundary wall, fire and rescue services to CAT-6 standards, and an upgraded apron and taxiway were essential for “safe and all-weather operations”.Aviation expert and Avialaz Consultants CEO Sanjay Lazar called for closer monitoring of all underdeveloped airfields used by Flying Training Organisations (FTOs), particularly Baramati.“DGCA, MADC and the aviation ministry had promised upgrades, including night-landing facilities. That work needs to be done now,” Lazar said recently.
