[8][7] The UDAN scheme was created to add to this number by expediting the development and operationalization of India's potential target of nearly 425 unserved, under-served, and mostly underdeveloped regional airports with regularly scheduled flights.

[22] Subsequent phases with the inclusion of seaplanes will boost the number of potential landing sites from nearly 500 airports to over five lakhs (500,000) waterbodies as well as more locations along India's 7,000  km coastline.

[25][26] Indian prime minister Narendra Modi launched the scheme on 27 April 2017 by flagging off the inaugural regional flights between Delhi and Shimla, and also between Kadapa-Hyderabad-Nanded.

Following concessions from the Government of India:[28] Following concessions from the participating state governments at their respective UDAN-RCS airports:[28] Airport operators (commercial or private companies, central and state governments or their entities such as AAI and Defence Ministry) must agree to provide the following concessions to participate in UDAN-RCS scheme:[28] Cargo flights will be given similar benefits except no "Value Gap Funding" (VGF) will be provided.

[9] Starting from 2017, the airfare cap and VGF in this 10-year scheme will be revised quarterly, based on Consumer Price Index for Industrial Workers.

[9][32] RCS subsidy will be raised by levying a cess, which will be revised periodically, on the flight between main trunk routes connecting major cities.

Subsequent phases were supposed to include STOL seaplanes and ski and bush planes operating from STOLports.

SpiceJet was planning to buy 100 Quest Kodiak amphibian seaplanes for US$400 million, including long-term parts and maintenance (December 2017)[23][34] The trials were conducted from Girgaum Chowpatty off the Mumbai coast with Union minister Nitin Gadkari on board.

At the occasion, Gadkari claimed that seaplanes had the potential to revolutionize air transport in the country, possibly opening up many more destinations by enhancing the potential pool of landing sites from nearly 500 airports to over five lakh (500,000) waterbodies and thousand more locations along India's 7,000 km long coastline.

[24] A few days later on 12 December 2017, Prime Minister Modi also rode a Quest Kodiak operated from Sabarmati River to Dharoi Dam.

[36] AAI aims to operationalize, hundreds of routes in several rounds of UDAN-RCS, from at least 100 regional airports by the end of 2018-2019 financial year.

[3][25] AAI will periodically publish the updated list of participating airports and helipads, with collaboration from their owners, such as central govt, state govt, commercial and private parties, and in addition any entity can list their airport or helipad with the government for this scheme.

[42] The central government has received bids for 111 routes from 15 airlines under the third round of auction for the UDAN scheme.

The phase also plans to promote short-haul routes, meaning no monetary support will be given to operators with stages more than 600 km.

[49] Key Features of UDAN 5.0 are as follows: Poor infrastructure including the lack of operational readiness of airports in remote areas and lack of availability of bays in the private airports in the large metro cities, shortage of pilots, lack of favorable rules and still pending reforms in DGCA (aviation regulator) and AAI rules and regulations are the main hurdles, most of these the government is responsible for (c. 22 December 2017).

[50] AAI announced that as the part of its ₹200,000 million (equivalent to ₹280 billion or US$3.2 billion in 2023) infrastructure upgrade plans over next 4 years (2021) it will add 273 bays at 24 major airports against the industry requirement of 300 overnight parking bays at 30 airports in next 5 years (c. 22 December 2017).

[51] The solution lies in the policy intervention, such as reserving at least 25% bays for the regional routes at the metro airports.

[52] A 2019 analysis by Outlook of the first two phases of RCS routes notes that the success rate of UDAN was less than 20 per cent.

[53] Aviation consultancy firm CAPA India had predicted that the success of the scheme would depend on the participation established airlines, since in its current form, UDAN does not make a business case for small and independent operators who cannot benefit from the economies of scale.

[54] In its report, “Indian Aviation Outlook for FY2019", CAPA India pointed out that "the chances of failure of regional airlines operating older aircraft, dispersed across multiple stations without rigorous demand assessment, and in the absence of a maintenance ecosystem is significant".

[56] Critics have also pointed out issues in Scheme execution such as AAI's selection of airports that lack supporting economic activity.