The first international flight flagged off from Srinagar by the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi in February this year had brought Jammu and Kashmir on the global air map.
Initially, only one flight was operated on every Saturday, and introduction of more flights was made dependent on the response of the people.
“We wanted to book a ticket for the Srinagar-Dubai flight but were told that the flight will not be operational from January next year,” a passenger not wishing to be named said.
He said that the airlines operating the flight cited poor response for closing down the service.
Pertinently, Jammu and Kashmir got its first international airport with the flagging of the first international flight earlier this year.
The new airport terminal, spread over 19,700 sq mt, is made of glass and steel. It has all the expected mod-cons - air-conditioning, central heating, escalators, public address systems, CCTVs for surveillance and flight display systems.
“There are 16 check-in counters. The airport can handle 500 domestic and 450 international passengers at one time,” an official at the airport claimed.
The number of aircraft parking bays had also been upgraded from four to nine, after the inaugural international flight.
When contacted, officials at the Srinagar airport feigned ignorance over the issue. “I have no information about the service being cancelled,” Director Airport Authority of India, Srinagar O S Tyagi said.
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