Visakhapatnam, Dec 16 (IANS) Union Civil Aviation Minister K. Ram Mohan Naidu said on Tuesday that the Bhogapuram International Airport will be dedicated to the nation in May 2026.

He also announced that the trial runs at the upcoming airport near Vizianagaram will be conducted next month.

He was speaking at the launch of Aviation, Aerospace and Defence (AAD) EduCity near Bhogapuram Airport.

Union Minister Ram Mohan Naidu said that while the airport was originally scheduled to be completed by June 2026, the inauguration will be advanced by a month.

During a review last month, he had announced that 91.7 per cent of the airport works have been completed.

An AAD EduCity, coming up on 136 acres, is claimed to be India’s first integrated Aviation, Aerospace and Defence EduCity.

This EduCity is designed as a national capability platform to address the acute global and domestic shortage of aviation professionals and to position India as a leading supplier of aviation talent.

Andhra Pradesh’s Education and IT Minister Nara Lokesh, who presided over the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between two private firms, said the initiative will address the human capital, which is the most pressing constraint facing the aviation sector.

The launch event was also attended by Goa Governor, P. Ashok Gajapathi Raju, Andhra Pradesh Assembly Speaker Chintakayala Ayyannapatrudu, G.B.S. Raju and others.

This Aviation EduCity is being conceptualised as a fully integrated education–innovation–industry cluster, combining international branch campuses (IBCs) and globally reputed universities, licensing and certification programmes aligned with Directorate General of Civil Aviation, European Union Aviation Safety Agency and global standards, advanced research and innovation centres in aerospace design, AI-enabled aviation systems, unmanned aerial vehicles, sustainable aviation and safety.

The facility will also have incubation, prototyping and startup support for aviation and aerospace technologies and residential and social infrastructure, creating a self-sustaining campus ecosystem.

According to the Andhra Pradesh government, this model aligns with National Civil Aviation Policy (NCAP), National Education Policy 2020, Make in India, and India’s broader aerospace and defence ambitions.

–IANS

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