Ahmedabad, the cricket enthusiasts' hub, is gearing up to handle a massive surge in air travel as the ICC Men's World Cup finals match between India and Australia draws near. With domestic airfare prices skyrocketing and over a hundred charter flights scheduled, the Ahmedabad airport is preparing for the influx of passengers and coordinating with charter operators to efficiently manage the increased demand.

The high domestic airfare is a clear indicator of the extraordinary demand for flights to Ahmedabad. Prices for a one-way flight have reached as high as Rs 40,000 from Hyderabad and Rs 29,000 from Kochi. The demand is so high that even flights from Raipur are not available, except for a staggering price of Rs 39,000 for Saturday travel.

To handle the surge in air traffic, the Ahmedabad airport has made necessary arrangements. Out of the 57 parking bays at the airport, 16 have been designated for charter aircraft. The airport authorities are working closely with charter operators, requesting them to drop their clients at Ahmedabad and park their planes at nearby airports such as Surat, Bhavnagar, Rajkot, and Vadodara. In addition, a plan has been prepared for non-standard parking, which includes parking charter aircraft on vacant aprons, unused taxiways, and parking bays allocated for private jets.

A spokesperson for the airport stated that they have also accepted requests from airlines to operate additional flights to and from metro cities. To accommodate an air display by the Indian Air Force, an airspace closure from 1.25 pm to 2.10 pm on Sunday has been scheduled.

However, the scarcity of available seats on non-stop airline flights landing in Ahmedabad before evening on Sunday is a cause for concern. The situation is exacerbated by the lack of charter flights, as the ongoing assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, Chhattisgarh, and Rajasthan have led to political parties booking charter aircraft in advance. Mandar Bharde, managing director of MAB Aviation, a charter aircraft aggregator, revealed that he has received numerous inquiries and has a waiting list of ten clients wanting to charter flights to Ahmedabad. Some individuals are even trying to purchase vacant seats on already booked charter flights. The high demand has resulted in operators increasing the prices, with a 6-seater Beechcraft now costing between Rs 8-12 lakh to charter.

Furthermore, flight and hotel prices in Ahmedabad have witnessed an unprecedented surge, with airfares spiking up to 6 to 8 times higher compared to other months. Bharatt Malik of Yatra Online confirmed this surge in demand, stating that people have been rushing to book flights and hotels in Ahmedabad even before India qualified for the finals.

As Ahmedabad prepares for an exciting clash between cricket giants, India and Australia, the city is bracing itself for a travel frenzy like never before. With the airport making necessary arrangements to accommodate the surge in charter flights and extra airline flights, it remains to be seen how smoothly the travel logistics can be managed during this exhilarating cricket event.