Juhu Aerodrome

19°05′53″N 72°50′02″E / 19.09806°N 72.83389°E / 19.09806; 72.83389

Juhu Aerodrome
Summary
Airport typePublic
OperatorAirports Authority of India
ServesMumbai
LocationJuhu, Maharashtra, India
Opened1928; 96 years ago (1928)
Hub forPawan Hans
Elevation AMSL13 ft / 4 m
Map
Juhu Aerodrome is located in Mumbai
Juhu Aerodrome
Juhu Aerodrome
Map
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
08/26 3,750 1,143 Paved
16/34 2,400 731 Paved

Juhu Aerodrome (ICAO: VAJJ) is located in Juhu, an upmarket residential suburb of Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. It is served primarliy by general aviation aircraft and helicopters.[1] It was founded in 1928 as India's first civil aviation airport.[2]

In 1932, JRD Tata landed at the Juhu Aerodrome, inaugurating India's first scheduled commercial mail service. Juhu served as the city's primary airport during and up to World War II. In 1948, commercial operations were moved to the much larger RAF Santacruz (now Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport; CSMIA) which was built 2 km (1.2 mi) east of Juhu aerodrome during the war.

Today, the aerodrome handles all helicopter operations out of Mumbai. It also hosts the Bombay Flying Club and several executive and light aircraft and gliders. In 2010, the Airports Authority of India (AAI), which runs the airport, proposed to extend the runway 08/26 into the sea to allow larger aircraft to land, however permission for this was denied by the Ministry of Environment and Forests. With the New Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) rules of 2011 permitting roads on stilts, the Airports Authority of India announced in January 2012 that it would once again pursue its plan of extending the runway at Juhu Aerodrome into the sea.[3]

  1. ^ Volume 7 (1953). Asian and Indian skyways. Retrieved 20 February 2011.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) Page 52
  2. ^ "Juhu airstrip to get a facelift". Rediff.com. 13 October 2007. Retrieved 10 February 2012.
  3. ^ At Juhu aerodrome VHF (very high frequency) communication exists at 124.35 MHz.