Context: For the first time in the country, a small aircraft in the form of an air taxi is being used for services, said CM of Haryana at the inauguration ceremony of the air taxi service.

• Government has inaugurated the newly constructed Hisar airport in Haryana from Chandigarh under the Regional Connectivity Scheme – Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik (RCS-UDAN).

About the Scheme

Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik (UDAN) scheme: It was launched in 2017 by the Ministry of Civil Aviation. The scheme is a component of the National Civil Aviation Policy (NCAP), 2016.

• Aim: To develop a regional aviation market. It seeks to connect under-served and unserved airports in India through the revival of existing airstrips and airports.

Objectives

• Create affordable yet economically viable and profitable flights on regional routes.
• Development of remote areas and enhancing trade and commerce and tourism expansion.
• Employment creation in the aviation sector.

Duration: The scheme would be in operation for a period of 10 years.
Key Features of the scheme

• Under the scheme, airlines have to cap airfares for 50% of the total seats at Rs. 2,500 per hour of flight.

This would be achieved through

• (1) a financial stimulus in the form of concessions from Central and State governments and airport operators and
• (2) Viability Gap Funding– A government grant provided to the airlines to bridge the gap between the cost of operations and expected revenue.
• The partner State Governments (other than North Eastern States and Union Territories where contribution will be 10 %) would contribute a 20% share to this fund.

Regional Connectivity Fund would be created to meet the viability gap funding requirements under the scheme.The RCF levy per departure will be applied to certain domestic flights.
Phases Under the Scheme

• UDAN 1.0 and 2.0: During RCS-UDAN version 1.0 & 2.0, 66 airports were identified and 31 heliports (28 unserved heliports and 3 unserved airports).
• UDAN 3.0: During UDAN version 3.0, to increase the tourism potential at the coastal areas, Tourism routes in coordination with the Ministry of Tourism and Seaplanes for connecting Water Aerodromes were included.
• UDAN 4.0: The focus of UDAN 4.0 is on priority areas like North East Region, Hilly States, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh and Islands.