State-run helicopter operator Pawan Hans is planning to enter the commercial airline business offering regional connectivity and has already received a go-ahead from its board, a top official has said.

The New Delhi-based firm, however, is yet to decide on the business model and the timeline for the proposed venture, the official said.

The country’s largest helicopter company, which slipped into the red in the 2012 fiscal, has managed to turnaround with a Rs 7-8 crore net profit (unaudited) in the past fiscal on account of higher efficiencies and cost-cutting.

“Pawan Hans has a mandate from its board as well as the Government to go for fixed wing aircraft operations. That is a very challenging opportunity for us,” Pawan Hans Chairman Anil Srivastava, who is also a joint secretary in the Aviation Ministry, told PTI.

Srivastava said plans are in line for the regional connectivity policy, which envisages providing regional air connectivity to support traffic at larger airports.

The Government is in the process of finalising a policy to promote the regional air connectivity and increase air services in the hinterlands, which is expected to be announced in the next three months.

“So, Pawan Hans, in anticipation, intends to play a vital role in the segment. We want to make use of the smaller airstrip lying across the country,” Srivastava said.

There are 290-odd airstrips in the country. Of these, some are operational while most of them are unused.

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