Karnataka: Belagavi Airport Near Sambra To Be Redeveloped Into International Airport

In a meeting with officers on Tuesday (16 August), District in-charge Minister Govind Karjol announced plans to renovate the Belagavi Airport near Sambra to international standards and would require some 100 acres of land to be acquired.

He directed that a proposal be made for this from the district administration authorities. This process will involve identifying the land that surrounds the airport and prohibiting its conversion or sale. Sambra Airport is near villages like Sambra and Honnihal.

This plan's implementation would mark the third airport redevelopment of the Sambra airport. Built between the two World Wars, the airport served as a base for the Royal British Air Force. It played a crucial role in the liberation of Goa. The Indian Air Force established the Airmen Training School at Sambra after Independence.

The State government made investments at the airport and allowed commercial flights there. The State government added more land and infrastructure to improve the airport in 2017.

According to a senior district administration, this move indicates that the plans for an international airport in Kittur have been scrapped. "Given that there is no need for such a facility from this region and that the aerial distance between Sambra and Kittur is only 40 km, it seems unlikely that there would be two international airports within such a short distance," the officer added, reports The Hindu.

Murugesh Nirani, the industries minister, had discussed plans to develop Kittur's international airport. Besides its historical significance, he claimed Kittur was picked because of its geographic proximity to North Karnataka cities like Belagavi, Hubballi-Dharwad, and Vijayapura.