India’s first seaplane service is about to launch in Gujarat on 31st October 2020, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s birth anniversary. The service aims to provide air connectivity between the Sabarmati Riverfront in Ahmedabad and the Statue of Unity in Kevadia and will be operated by SpiceJet.
Understanding Seaplanes
A seaplane is a fixed-wing aeroplane designed for taking off and landing on water. The two main types of seaplanes are flying boats or hull seaplanes, and floatplanes. A flying boat is a fixed-winged seaplane with a hull that allows it to land on water, generally lacking any type of landing gear for operation on land. Its fuselage, similar to a ship’s hull, can float, providing the aircraft with buoyancy. This type of plane carries its crew, passengers, and cargo in the hull and uses smaller floats near the wingtips for stability. On the other hand, a floatplane is supported on the water by pontoons, known as floats.
Global Usage of Seaplanes
Countries like the Philippines, Canada, Australia, the United States, Finland, the United Kingdom, Sri Lanka, Fiji, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, United Arab Emirates, Italy, Maldives and Hong Kong have operational seaplanes. In India, the first commercial seaplane service was launched as a pilot project in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in December 2010 with the capacity to accommodate 10 passengers.
The Indian Seaplane Project
The Airports Authority of India (AAI), at the Centre’s direction, asked Gujarat, Assam, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana state governments, and the Andaman & Nicobar administration to suggest potential locations for water airport establishment to boost tourism. In 2019, the Centre approved flights from six water airports, including Shatrunjay Dam (Gujarat), Guwahati riverfront and Umrangso reservoir (Assam), and Nagarjuna Sagar (Andhra Pradesh) under the third round of Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik (UDAN) scheme. The awarded seaplane operation routes include Sabarmati riverfront to Statue of Unity and Shatrunjay Dam; Guwahati riverfront to Umrango reservoir, Jorhat and Shillong (Meghalaya); and Nagarjuna Sagar to Vijayawada and Hyderabad (Telangana).
Benefits of the Seaplane Project
The project is expected to increase tourism and hotel business at the local level and create jobs for local people. The establishment of water airports should also contribute towards improving current social infrastructural facilities at the proposed sites.
Environmental Impact of the Water Airport Project
Experts suggest that the activities proposed under the water airport project might have a similar environmental impact as an airport. However, water airports are not listed projects/activities in the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Notification, 2006, or in EIA draft 2020. Positive impacts could be seen in the aquatic ecosystem near seaplane operations, thanks to oxygen mixing in the water during takeoff and landing which could enhance oxygen levels and reduce carbon content in this system.
The UDAN Scheme
The Ministry of Civil Aviation launched Ude Desh Ka Aam Naagrik (UDAN) in 2016 as a regional connectivity scheme. The scheme’s objective is to create affordable yet economically viable and profitable flights on regional routes, making air travel accessible to small-town residents. The scheme aims to provide connectivity to unserved and underserved airports of the country by reviving existing air-strips and airports. Under the UDAN scheme, under-served airports have no more than one flight per day, while unserved airports have no operations. The scheme is operational for 10 years, with UDAN 3.0 and UDAN 4.0 aiming to include Seaplanes for connecting water airports.
