The Airports Economic Regulatory Authority of India (AERA) has revised the ad-hoc aeronautical tariff for the upcoming Bhogapuram International Airport, allowing operator GMR Visakhapatnam International Airport Ltd (GVIAL) to levy updated charges from the airport’s commercial operations date (COD), replacing its earlier order issued in June.
The revised order, issued on July 27, supersedes AERA’s Order No. 09/2026-27 dated June 12, after GVIAL sought a review citing a significant deterioration in expected passenger traffic and the resulting impact on the airport’s financial viability during its initial months of operation.
According to the regulator, GVIAL informed it that anticipated traffic from the COD until March 31, 2027 has been revised downward to 1.89 million passengers from the 2.69 million projected in its Multi-Year Tariff Proposal submitted in July 2025. The airport operator attributed the decline to reduced airline capacity under the Summer Schedule 2026 and further cuts in flight frequencies amid prevailing geopolitical disruptions.
GVIAL argued that the tariff approved under the earlier ad-hoc order would not generate sufficient aeronautical revenue to meet essential obligations, including debt servicing and operational expenditure, potentially affecting the financial sustainability of the greenfield airport during its initial phase.
AERA said it recognised that Bhogapuram, being a greenfield airport, is likely to face operational uncertainties during its early months and that the ad-hoc tariff is only an interim arrangement until the regular tariff for the first control period is finalised.
The revised tariff order includes charges for landing, parking, terminal navigation, passenger-related fees and User Development Fee (UDF). Under the revised schedule, the UDF has been fixed at ₹835 for embarking domestic passengers and ₹1,255 for embarking international passengers, while disembarking passengers will pay ₹355 and ₹545, respectively, excluding applicable taxes.
The regulator has also approved a variable tariff plan to incentivise airlines, including discounted landing charges for new routes, additional flight frequencies and freighter operations during the interim tariff period.
