Five locations scouted for development of no-frills airports

New Delhi: Civil Aviation Minister Pusapati Ashok Gajapathi Raju Tuesday said the government has identified five locations for development of no-frills airports in the country.

"We have identified five locations for the development of no-frills airports in the country," Gajapathi Raju said in his interactions with the media after detailing the achievements of his ministry in the first 100 days of assuming office.

According to the minister, the five locations for development of no-frills airports includes Tezu in Arunachal Pradesh, Kishangarh in Rajasthan, Jharsuguda in Odisha, Hubli and Belgaum in Karnataka.

Mumbai offers a new experience in airports

Passengers travelling eastwards from Budapest’s Liszt Ferenc Airport have an opportunity to see Mumbai’s new Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, now surely one of the world’s most beautiful and astonishing airports.

Turkish Airlines, Qatar Airways, KLM, Lufthansa and British Airways all touch down in Budapest and Mumbai, where then-Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh inaugurated the state-of-the-art Terminal 2, or T2, on 10 January this year. It opened for international operations on 12 February.

The decision to rebuild Mumbai’s dingy and congested Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport was taken in 2006 and the new terminal was built by the GVK-led consortium at a cost of over Rp 12,500 crores (a crore is 10 million in India).

From Oct. 1, flyers to pay more for using Lucknow airport

New Delhi/Lucknow: Come October 1, passengers using Lucknow airport will have to pay User Development Fee (UDF) of Rs 370 for domestic and Rs 1,060 for international flights over and above the base price of their tickets.     The UDF levy would rise by 5.9 per cent to Rs 392 for domestic flyers and Rs 1,124 for international passengers from April 1 next year, according to the latest order of the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority (AERA).     While the Passenger Service Fee (PSF) for facilitation at Rs 77 per passenger, which is paid to the government, would be merged with the UDF and not charged separately as is being done now, an amount of Rs 130 as PSF for security would also be charged in addition to UDF.

Indian airports over-regulated: Global airports body

New Delhi: One of the key challenges for Indian aviation is the development of airport infrastructure which should not be subject to strict economic regulation in every case, Airports Council International (ACI) director general Angela Gittens told newspersons after interacting with senior aviation sector officials in New Delhi.

ACI has offered its support to India’s attempts to further develop its airport infrastructure and find the right regulatory framework. “Other countries have faced this dilemma and we will provide examples for the government to explore. India should be one of the three largest aviation markets in the world. ACI wants to see India take its rightful place in the aviation world,” Ms. Gittens said when asked about the interactions with Ministry of Civil Aviation officials.

Mumbai makes it to 'smart city' list on strength of its airport

Washington: A single big idea — its monumental new airport — has propelled Mumbai into the A-list of National Geographic's "smart cities" across the world, a catalog that includes familiar metropolises such as New York and London, newbies such as Dubai and Seoul, and outposts such as Halifax, Nova Scotia (Canada) and Tallinn, Estonia.

NG's "smart city" list isn't necessarily a chronicle of technologically accomplished cities. In fact, Mumbai makes the cut on account of its artsy airport. "Travelers might spot the peacock feather motif throughout terminal 2 of Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji airport. This and other lofty designs were unveiled earlier this year at the Jaye He Museum, now India's largest public art programme. Some 7,000 works pack the four-storey museum," the magazine says, noting that with that 40 million people passing through the airport each year, the exhibit rivals the Louvre in number of visitors.

Indian airports need to be further developed

New Delhi: The Airports Council International (ACI) Thursday said India last year witnessed passenger traffic growth of 6.2 percent and the Indian airports sector needs to be prepared to handle increased passenger numbers and more cargo in the coming years.

"India is full of potential with a large population in a large country with a growing middle class. However it still has a long way to go in view of the fact that other countries with similar or lower population bases handle relatively larger volumes of passenger traffic," said Angela Gittens, world director general, ACI.

Govt open to allowing second airport within 150 km of an existing one

New Delhi/Hyderabad:  The Government is keeping an open mind on allowing a second airport to come up within 150 km of an existing one.

The current policy says that no new airport should be allowed within a 150 km radius of an existing airport.

Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju said the rule was “infructuous” right from the beginning. Officials said the rule was brought in after discussions with private players who threw up the idea.

India should review airport regulatory model for investment

New Delhi: India's prevailing airport regulatory model has yielded "poor returns" for investors, global airports body Airports Council International (ACI) said today and sought its review to attract investment to develop aviation infrastructure in the country.

Asserting that transparent economic regulatory processes must be put in place in India, ACI Director General Angela Gittens said, "The current regulatory model has yielded poor returns for investors and this could stifle development of India's airports in the long run."

Airport privatization process under review

Ahmedabad:  The much-hyped privatization of six airports in the country is again under review as Airports Authority of India (AAI) is expected to invite fresh bids for the same. The privatization process which was initiated by UPA government last year has gone through various changes and postponement. The previous government had expressed certain reservations in the model concession agreement (MCA).

AAI is set to invite request for quotation (RFQ) again after a fresh MCA is decided upon. "The MCA was prepared in March but it was stalled as previous government wanted some changes in certain clauses. Now with the new government at the helms, we expect the process to be expedited," said a senior AAI official.

According to officials, potential bidders were ready with RFQs but AAI could not go ahead because central government had not approved MCA. "We have had discussions with the civil aviation officials and we are hopeful that the government will soon approve the new agreement and we can accept the new RFQs," added AAI official.
Read news in full25/08/14 Piyush Mishra/Times of India

Mumbai airport to implant special grass which deters birds

In order to address the problem of bird hits which endangers flight safety and causes huge loses, city airport will soon implant special variety of grass which will keep away insects and birds.

The authorities at Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA) have sanctioned a year-long study to a Pune-based NGO, Ela Foundation, to survey the behavior of birds, including the migratory ones, in and around 10 km of the airport (risk zone).

The survey by the NGO also includes the bird movement during the night. "Once the study gets complete, then the airport authorities at CSIA have plans to implant specially modified grass which is not to the liking of insects. Birds wont frequent the area in the absence of the insects," said an airport official. The specialized grass, also called as an 'avian-deterrent' grass, has natural fungus in the form of endophyte which produces chemicals not conducive for growth of insects.

Small-town India takes off with sharp ATF cuts

With airlines having dropped fares and added flights to several minor airports across the country, small-town India is flying high. Carriers have been able to trim fares and start more flights to destinations like Bagdogra and Bhubaneswar thanks to the enormous savings that they’re making on the price of jet fuel.
States such as West Bengal, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh have slashed the value-added tax on aviation turbine fuel (ATF), the consequence of which has been a big jump in flights, leading to a sharp increase in passenger traffic.
So enthused are some airlines by the cost savings that they have started international connections from these airports — SpiceJet, for example, launched a Kolkata-Bagdogra-Kathmandu route last week.

TATA Group may invest in Navi Mumbai airport

The TATA Group, which holds stakes in two Indian carriers including a majority in the soon to be launched Vistara, has asked the government to reconsider a rule that bars airlines investing in the Navi Mumbai international airport project from holding a board seat.
The aviation ministry recently allowed the Navi Mumbai airport, to be built through PPP, to raise 26% of its equity from airlines against the 10% allowed in PPP airports.
TATA’s have argued that any airline or its associate that would infuse capital investment of INR 19,000 crore or more would want to secure its investment.

Airports Will be Set Up Only If There is Air Traffic, Says Ashok

Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu wants to have an airport in each district so as to make the State an aviation hub but his party colleague and Civil Aviation Minister P Ashok Gajapathi Raju sounds more practical on the issue.
Taking a general view of the growing demands across the country for more airports, Raju said Saturday that constructing new airports would serve no purpose if there weren’t enough number of air passengers. However, he made it clear the Centre had no objection to developing airports at places accessible to air passengers if the State concerned acquired the land for the purpose.
Raju also lauded the efforts of his party chief and Chief Minister Naidu to expand the aviation sector in the State.

Budget airports may transport you to an era long lost

New Delhi: Flying today is inconceivable without body scans, x-rayed baggage, conveyor belts, aerobridges and interminable waits. But a crop of budget airports India is planning to build in small towns will transport flyers to a more graceful era where you could walk into an airport minutes before a flight, check in your own luggage, and walk on to the tarmac to board a turboprop.

The Airports Authority of India has a plan for 50 airports across 11 states that includes barbed wire, not boundary walls; people handling baggage, and not machines; a shorter check-in time to keep lounges small; and local cops instead of the more expensive Central Industrial Security Force. And, no food kiosks.

MoCA allows airlines to invest up to 26% in Navi Mumbai airport

Mumbai: The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA), Government of India has allowed Navi Mumbai airport, which is being built through a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) mode, to raise up to 26 per cent of its equity from airlines, but has said investing airlines will not have any representation on the airport’s board.

Airlines are currently allowed to invest up to ten per cent of the equity of PPP airports, up from five per cent a few years ago. Mumbai’s second airport in Navi Mumbai, being built by City and Industrial Development Corporation of Maharashtra Ltd. (CIDCO) sought clearances from the Ministry to allow this to be raised to 26 per cent, Mint’s Tarun Shukla reported.

Govt to privatise 6 airports: Chennai, Kolkata left out?

As the process of privatisation of four airports: Jaipur, Lucknow, Guwahati and Ahmedabad have gathered pace in the last few weeks, doubts have cropped up over Chennai and Kolkata airports’ privatisation being pushed back due to lack of cooperation from state governments and strong objections from their respective workers' unions. The plan to privatise six airports including Chennai and Kolkata was moved by the former aviation minister Ajit Singh just before the UPA's tenure came to a close. A consultant closely associated with the parleys for airport privatisation through PPP told CNBC-TV18 that Chennai and Kolkata may be dropped initially from the list of six airports to be privatised. One large private airport developer also spoke of the PPP process being initiated for only four airports now.

Mobile application for airport users

Kochi:  It is going to put Cochin international airport in your pocket, in a manner of speaking. The Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL) which is managing the airport is developing a mobile application to provide travel planning tools, terminal information, news, special offers and more – everything you need for an easy journey to and through Cochin airport, in the mobile app store.

The mobile application will be available on all platforms including Android and iPhone.  The user will be able to get live flight updates on demand, book  car parking and taxis, view the latest airport security guide, get mobile-friendly interactive terminal maps, see full shop and restaurant listings and timings, product availability at Cochin Duty-free shop, weather and city guides, airport journey planner and flight timetables for every airline.

Government plans no-frills airports to bring down flying costs

New Delhi: The government is planning to build small airports with rudimentary facilities, in order to bring down the cost of flying.

Such airports will be a world apart from the swanky ones at Delhi and Mumbai. As per a blueprint being prepared by the Airports Authority of India (AAI), these airports, which will be located in small towns, will lack conveyor belts, arrival lounges and even air-conditioning. Luggage will have to be checked in manually. One air traffic control (ATC) tower will cater to a number of such airports.

CIAL ups borrowing cap to fund expansion plans

Kochi: Keeping in view the additional fund requirements for meeting the capital expenditure for its long-term expansion plans, the Cochin International Airport Limited is all set to raise its borrowing limits of the company to Rs.1500 crore from the current ceiling of Rs.300 crore.

As per CIAL annual report 2014-15, a special resolution with regard to raising the credit cap will be presented during its annual general meeting (AGM) to be held on August 29 for the approval of its shareholders. The proposal, being initiated with a view to finance its ongoing and future projects and enhanced working capital needs of the company, had already been approved by the company director board during its meeting on December 2013.

Odisha Govt to establish mini airports at Paradip, Dhamara, Kalinganagar

Bhubaneswar: The State Govt has decided to set up new mini-airports at Paradip, Kalinganagar and Dhamara. Meanwhile in Malkangiri, land acquisition work for seting up a new airport there has been finished.

According to sources of General administration department, the state government is taking necessary steps use the airport located at Jharsuguda for commercial purpose. Similarly, the state government has decided to make Jaipur airport in Koraput district a full fledged one.
Read news in full 28/04/15 Odisha Dairy