Jabalpur Airport
IATA: JLR ICAO: VAJB
Summary
Airport type	Public
Owner	Airports Authority of India
Operator	Airports Authority of India
Serves	Jabalpur
Location	Dumna, Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, India
Elevation AMSL	1,624 ft / 495 m
Coordinates	23°11′05″N 080°03′31.5″E / 23.18472°N 80.058750°E / 23.18472; 80.058750
Website	Jabalpur Airport
Map
JLR Location in India Show map of Madhya Pradesh JLR JLR (India) Show map of India
Runways
Direction Length Surface ft m 06/24 9,022 2,750 Asphalt
Statistics (April 2022 - March 2023)
Passengers 431,724 ( 46.7%) Aircraft movements 7,113 ( 37.9%) Cargo tonnage 157
Source: AAI[1][2][3]

Jabalpur Airport (IATA: JLR, ICAO: VAJB), also known as Dumna Airport, is a domestic airport serving the city of Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, India. It is located at Dumna, 25 km (16 mi) east of the city. It is the third busiest airport in Madhya Pradesh after Devi Ahilya Bai Holkar International Airport in Indore and Raja Bhoj Airport in Bhopal in terms of both passenger and aircraft movements. The Airports Authority of India (AAI) is upgrading the airport to provide better services to the air travellers of the region. The upgrades are expected to be completed by the end of 2023, and the new terminal building is to be commissioned by March 2023.^[4]

The airport serves the whole of eastern Madhya Pradesh, especially the Mahakaushal region. It serves tourists who visit Kanha National Park, Bandhavgarh National Park and Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary, also, the Pench National Park, although it can also be approached through Nagpur side but the advantage of Jabalpur is that one can conveniently approach multiple National Parks of Madhya Pradesh keeping it as the centre point. The recently notified Veerangana Durgavati Tiger Reserve which is the seventh tiger reserve in Madhya Pradesh also lies in close vicinity to Jabalpur and can be easily visited via Jabalpur. Places like Amarkantak, Panchmarhi, and Khajuraho can also be easily approached from Jabalpur. The beautiful marble cliffs and waterfalls on either sides of the Narmada River, at nearby Bhedaghat, as well as Madan Mahal, Rani Durgawati Museum, Chausath Yogini Temple, Bargi Dam, Dumna Nature Reserve Park are among the other areas of attractions. The airport is spread over an area of 960 acres (390 ha). Alliance Air, and IndiGo operate scheduled flight services to and from Jabalpur Airport.

History

The airport was constructed during the British era. The airport was opened in the 1930s and used periodically by the Royal Air Force and Royal Flying Corps before and during World War II. It was commonly known as Jubbulpore Aerodrome, and had a dirt runway until the 1960s. The new paved runway was built atop the original dirt runway, in the same alignment. Before the aerodrome at Dumna was opened, planes had been landing, even in the 1920s, within a racecourse inside the city limits of Jabalpur.^{[citation needed]} In 2015, the State government handed over 468.43 acres of land to the AAI for expansion of the airport.^[5]

Facilities

Communication, navigation and surveillance

Airport has CNS/ATM facility like VHF, ATIS, DVR, AFTN, DVOR/DME, ADS-B, RCAG. ILS and Automation is going to be installed after completion of RWY expansion. Airport have also airport system and security facilities for APSUs like CCTV, X-ray machines, ETD, FIDS, PA SYSTEMS, DFMD, HHMD. The facilities are installed, operated, managed by CNS team of AAI.

Runway

The runway is capable of serving narrow body aircraft including Airbus 320 family/Boeing 737-800 and is equipped with night landing facilities, DVOR/DME, NDB and precision approach path indicator. It has a parking for one A-320/B-737 or 2 ATR-72 aircraft. ILS is under process after completion of RWY expansion, by CNS team and ADS-B and RCAG is going to commissioned soon.

The newly expanded runway, 2,750 m long, was successfully trialed by a Delhi–Jabalpur IndiGo Airlines flight on Saturday, 27 May 2023, and came under regular operation the next week. With the runway expansion, Jabalpur Airport is now home to the second longest runway in Madhya Pradesh, next only to that of Indore Airport (2,754 m) and ahead of the runways at Bhopal Airport (2,744 m), Gwalior Airport (2,743 m), and Khajuraho Airport (2,274 m).^[6]

Terminal

The terminal has the capacity of handling 200 passengers at the peak hours. It has 4 check-in desks apart from CCTV's and an X-ray machine for security. The airport is equipped with runway lighting, car-calling, night landing facilities, a food stall and an ATM. The Government of Madhya Pradesh had provided with Tourism Information Center and medical facilities like first-aid, MIR, and doctors and nurse will be provided soon.^{[citation needed]}

Airlines and destinations

Statistics

Expansion

A new terminal building, spread over an area of 115,180 sq.ft. (10,701 m²), with a capacity to handle 500 passengers during peak hours is under-construction. The terminal will have three aerobridges, an advanced baggage screening system and a car parking for more than 250 cars and buses. The building is to be commissioned by March 2023.^[8] The project also includes extending the runway to 2,750 meters from the current 1,988 meters with one end with ILS facility, a 14 km (8.7 mi) long boundary wall, a 5 km (3.1 mi) long approach road connecting airport to the city, a 32-metre (105 ft) high new Air Traffic Control (ATC) tower cum technical block, apron, taxiway, isolation bay and a fire station at a cost of Rs. 412 crores. These upgrades were expected to be completed by December 2021, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which faced delays in work, it is now expected to be finished by the end of 2023.^[9] The foundation stone was laid on August 13, 2018, by Suresh Prabhu, Jayant Sinha, Rakesh Singh amongst others.^[10]

Accidents and incidents

• On 4 December 2015, a Spicejet Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 registration VT-SUC, operating as Spicejet Flight 2458, was landing at Jabalpur when the aircraft collided with a herd of 30-40 wild boars. Three boars were killed and the aircraft skidded off the runway coming to a stop with the left gear collapsed, left engine damage, and other unknown damage caused by the impact. Despite the damage, no serious passenger injuries were reported^[11]
• On 12 March 2022, an Alliance Air ATR-72-600 with the registration VT-AIW operating Alliance Air flight 617, was landing on runway 06 when it overshot the runway and came to rest on the RESA. All 55 passengers and 5 crew were evacuated from the aircraft unharmed.^[12]