A flight lands at the new Rajiv Gandhi International Airport near Hyderabad on Tuesday. (AFP)

Hyderabad, Feb. 12: Andhra Pradesh has reduced its sales tax on aviation turbine fuel (ATF) from 33 to 4 per cent. The state will bear a burden of Rs 50-60 crore because of the cut, chief minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy said.

The reduction will apply to public sector as well as private aviation companies.

Reddy said earlier the sales tax on ATF was reduced to 8 per cent only for those airlines that operated over 150 flights from Hyderabad. “Now we will charge four per cent for all,” he said.

He was addressing a news conference with civil aviation minister Praful Patel at the new international airport at Shamshabad, about 30 kms from the city, after the first commercial trial flight was conducted successfully from there.

A special Kingfisher airlines flight from Mumbai landed at the airport. Reddy said the airport would be inaugurated by UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi on March 14.

The new airport has 42 parking stands, including 12 passenger boarding bridges, a parking lot for 3,000 cars, 10 runway exit/entry points, a business hotel with 308 rooms and 16 self check-in kiosks.

Patel said the government planned to build 400 to 500 airports in the next 10 years.

The civil aviation ministry proposed to increase foreign direct investment in airport development from 74 to 100 per cent, he said.

The new aviation policy aims to develop unused defence airports and other small airports. The airport at Begumpet will be used for non-commercial operations of the government.

The ministry will encourage regional airlines to improve connectivity to semi-urban and rural areas, Patel said. He advised states to have rail connectivity to airports.