The Rourkela Airport in Odisha is on a fast track for a significant upgrade to match the operational capacity equivalent to Biju Patnaik International Airport at Bhubaneswar. The Odisha government has submitted a proposal in this regard to the Airport Authority of India that includes a master plan and an Obstacle Limitation Surfaces (OLS) survey to guide expansion efforts of the Rourkela Airport.

Union Tribal Affairs Minister Jual Oram, who chaired a high-level meeting at Bhubaneswar, told Akashvani News that the goal is to secure a 4C licence for Rourkela Airport that will allow flights to land safely at night. He said land acquisition for upgradation of the Airport will be taken up shortly and it will boost connectivity and create new economic opportunities for the steel city Rourkela coming under his parliamentary constituency Sundergarh. As part of the upgrade, the runway will be extended to 2,700 meters in length and 45 meters in width. Additionally, advanced navigation systems like Doppler Very High-Frequency Omni Range (DVOR) and CAT 1 Instrument Landing System (ILS) will be installed, the Union Minister added. He said these enhancements will allow larger aircraft, such as Airbus A320 and Boeing 737, to operate both during the day and at night. Flight operations at Rourkela airport started in January of 2023 under the Udaan scheme.