The report concerning change in schedule of flights at Srinagar Airport due to ongoing runway work just before the start of tourism season has raised many apprehensions in the minds of stakeholders.
It is obvious that any alteration in the flight schedule will have an impact on the influx of tourists especially if the number of flights will have to be reduced due to the changed operational timing of the aerodrome. Reportedly, the flight operations at Srinagar airport will be restricted between 8 am to 5 pm from April 6 as the Indian Air Force has to undertake a runway upgrade which is expected to continue till the onset of autumn months.
It is pertinent to mention that the present schedule of flights operating from this airport is from 8 am to 10 pm, with around 60 flights reaching and leaving the summer capital of J&K, ferrying tourists to a large extent.
The gap of five hours is going to lead to a tighter schedule of flights giving a tough time to airport helmsmen and the airlines to continue with the regular schedule. Already, this news has sent ripples across the Valley especially among the stakeholders waiting the whole year for the tourist season to have good prospects and handsome earnings.
It is pertinent to mention that the concerned authorities are also bound to take up such works in the summer months as those with technical knowledge will agree that such works, if carried out in winter or the rainy season, don’t have the durability therefore summer is the best time for carrying out runway up-gradation.
Runway strengthening work is a routine process carried out every 10-15 years to improve the runway surface. There is no doubt that the change in schedule or a lesser number of flights will create hurdles in thriving tourism, which has faced bottlenecks for many seasons starting from 2019, when it was cut short due to the Centre’s move to abrogate Article 370 and carve out two UTs from erstwhile J&K State. Then came 2020, which was even worse as COVID-19 halted life affecting all sectors including tourism. It took around two to three years when the normalcy was restored but 2025 was again a challenging year for tourism in J&K as Pahalgam terror strike followed by Operation Sindoor and later the vagaries of the weather in the months of August and September disrupted tourism, dashing the hopes of tourism stakeholders.
After such a bleak past, the people associated with the tourism industry were hopeful for a better 2026 but as per the Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) issued by the Indian Air Force regarding lesser operation hours at Srinagar Airport, they are again worried and anxious about the impact on tourism. It is therefore necessary for the concerned authorities to go for a trade-off ensuring that both tourism and vital runway work is adversely affected.
