"I am the happiest man in the world" said Albert Brunner, CEO of the BIAL consortium.

He has good reason. His seven years of perseverance, along with his dedicated team, has concluded with the smooth opening of the Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) on May 24, 2008.

Barring a few glitches here and there, the experience was "awe-inspiring" for many Bangaloreans, who, up till now, had to put up with the small AAI owned terminal at HAL airport. Reactions were rightfully positive, and the praise is well deserved.

Air India IC 609, an Airbus A320, from Mumbai was the first flight to touch down at BIA, which was turned around as IC 957 to Singapore, and became the first flight out.

In parallel, the era of HAL, and its decades of faithful service to Bangalore was coming to a close. Jet Airways 9W 2512, an ATR-72-500, to Mumbai and Singapore Airlines SQ503, a Boeing 777-200, to Singapore, were the last commercial domestic and international flights respectively.

Many aircraft that landed at HAL for their final flights, were then ferried across to BIAL to commence operations this morning. There were emotional thanks from the flight crews to the Air Traffic Controllers at HAL for their years of dedicated service, again the praise is rightfully deserved. The ATCOs at HAL will continue to operate the skies of Bangalore, controlling all the traffic to the south.

These many ferry flights created a small traffic jam in the skies over BIAL, causing minor delays, in inbound flights, who were forced to orbit, till landing slots opened up. Air France AF 192 from Paris, became the first international flight to land at BIAL.

But these are minuscule and teams at both airports, BIAL and HAL should take a well deserve bow to all the cheers that are due to them

Welcome to Bangalore, BIAL.

Travel trade associations skeptical of airlines implementing the directive
By Krupa Vora | Mumbai

The much-debated issue of refund of airline tickets has been now brought to the forefront by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) by issuing a Civil Aviation Requirement (CAR) letter to the airlines. As per this CAR dated May 22, 2008 all scheduled and non-scheduled carriers will now be subject to refund of airline tickets with immediate effect. The CAR letter has been issued in public interest as per Rule 133A of the Aircraft Rules and Ministry of Civil Aviation Order no. AV 13030/105/2007- DT dated May 12, 2008.

Commenting on the same, Kanu Gohain, Director General of Civil Aviation, said, “The issue of refund of tickets by airlines has become a major source of grievance amongst airline passengers. A large number of complaints are regularly received which revolve around delay in refund of unused tickets, the amount which is refunded by the airlines against cancelled tickets and the policy of not to refund the ticket amount but to adjust against tickets to be purchased by the passenger for the future travel in the same airline that too valid for a limited period of time.”

However, the travel trade associations who have been pushing for the resolution of this issue over a long period of time, have been skeptical with regards to the airlines implementing the CAR issued. Speaking to TravelBiz Monitor, P Sampat Kumar, National Managing Committee Member and Chairman Legal and Industry Affairs, TAFI, said that, “The association welcomes the initiative taken by Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) via DGCA to issue a directive to domestic airlines to forthwith look into the reasonable cancellation charges levied by them and the process of refund within the given time frame. TAFI also has taken note of DGCA directive informing airlines not to reflect charges, surcharges, fees as taxes giving the traveller an impression that it is government imposed. This also vindicates TAFI’s stand all along that all operational cost must be reflected in the fare.”

C V Prasad, President, TAAI stated that, “This move from DGCA was long pending, however the concern is whether the airlines will implement and follow the CAR issued by the DGCA.” To make it more clear, the letter mandates that passengers are entitled to full refund of all charges which are denoted as tax or surcharge. By implication the cancellation charges can only be levied on the fare component of the ticket. To make this clearer, if we have a ticket with a basic fare of Rs 100 and other charges of Rs 2,750, the entire Rs 2,750 will have to be refunded to the passenger in case of a cancellation.

Source : TravelBizMonitor.com

For more details please see this article

The BIAL management has sent out this e-mail earlier today, confirming the launch of operations of the new Bengaluru International Airport, later tonight.

Congratulations to the entire BIAL team, and welcome to Bangalore.
----------------------------------------------------
Friday, May 23, 2008 1:21 PM

Subject: New Date: Commencement of Commercial Operations at new Bangalore International Airport

Dear All,

This is to inform that Bengaluru International Airport Limited (BIAL) has received a notification from the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) on the above subject. According to the notification, “the Central Government hereby notifies that the Bangalore International Airport at Devanahalli would be commissioned w.e.f. 00.01 hours local time of 24th May, 2008, instead of w.e.f. 00.01 hours of 23rd May 2008 as notified earlier”.

We herewith officially confirm to all partners operating from New Bangalore International Airport (BIAL), Bangalore India:

1. New Bangalore International Airport will be operational from May 24, 2008
2. All flights scheduled to depart after 00:01 hours (local time) of May 24, 2008 will operate from the new Bangalore International Airport.
3. All flights that have a departure after 00:01 hours (local time) of May 24, 2008 from BIAL are accepted for landing at the new Bangalore International Airport on May 23, 2008
4. All flights that have a departure until 23:59 hours (local time) of May 23, 2008 will be operated from HAL airport (Current airport)

We thank you for your understanding and support and look forward to a mutually beneficial cooperation in future.

With best regards,

Marcel Hungerbuehler
____________________________
Chief Operation Officer

----------------------------------------------------
An update for international passengers.

All flights departing Bangalore before 23:59 23/May will depart from HAL airport. These are EK517, TG328, and SQ503. Passengers are advised to check with their airlines.

In fact SQ503 will be the last international departure from HAL airport.

Airports in the 21st century, are like the ports and railway junctions of the 19th and 20th century -- critical drivers of economic growth. As individuals, we look to the glamour and prestige associated with passenger air travel, while tending to overlook the air cargo requirements of commerce and industry which is drives the economic engine of Bangalore.

Thanks to years of power deficiency, Bangalore's economy is technology oriented. The IT industry is an addition to the long list of "high tech" industries calling Bangalore home. Telephony, electronics, machine tools, aeronautics, precision engineering, auto parts, garments, and floriculture industries, all of which produce goods, high in value, low in weight, and in many cases, perishable. All goods which are ideally suited to transport by air.

Globally, over 40% of goods by value are sent by air instead of surface transport. At Bangalore, which lacks a sea-port, it is more than 50%. Everyday, about Rs. 150 Crore (US$ 37 million) worth of goods transit Bangalore's airport, and this is set to double as soon as additional capacity is made available.

We are entering the final countdown to the operational commencement of the much vaunted "dream airport", Bengaluru International Airport (BIA), being promoted by BIAL consortium.

However, the dream is turning sour for much of Bangalore's industry.

BIAL has appointed two companies to provide Air Cargo terminals at the new airport. One in Menzies-Bobba and the other is Air-India - Singapore Air Terminal Services (AI-SATS).

More than a month ago, representatives of BIAL, Menzies-Bobba, and AI-SATS, assured industry that air cargo operations were ready to go, and painted a rosy picture of comfort and state of the art handling.

These are pictures taken at the AI-SATS warehouse on the evening of May 22, 2008, just 2 days before the launch of the new airport. Clearly, there is a huge gap between claims and reality.

Gaps between the roof and the walls

Unfinished construction with no security visible

Inadequate infrastructure. Generator in shambles.

What is absolutely mind boggling, is that the Customs Authorities have given the "all clear" to this warehouse, and have issued the necessary permits and bonding permissions to commence operations!!!!!!

The warehouse is clearly not ready for operations, and you will observe, the complete lack of basic facilities, even safety and security, an absolute must for any bonded facility.

By all appearances, this warehouse will require about 1 month to complete. In that month, this warehouse has the potential to handle cargo of value greater than the total investment in the airport.

Losses or damages to precious cargo will result in magnified damages of over Rs. 5,000 Crore to Bangalore's industry, and by extension it is Bangalore's economy and residents who will suffer the losses, due the un-preparedness on the part of BIAL and its concessionaire(s), and the hasty, ill-advised, and wrongly motivated actions by the Customs Authorities.

Economic reality is reshaping India's airline industry. Just a few years into a third wave of private operators, the high cost of fuel has led to a number of mergers, including a high-profile agreement to combine Indian Airlines with Air India. Other issues, including infrastructure constraints, increased competition, and wage inflation, have left low-cost carriers, such as Sahara and Air Deccan, with no alternative but to merge with larger airlines.

But the turbulence is likely to continue, as new carriers enter the fray to fill the gaps left by consolidation. And for the newly merged entities, the struggle has only begun, as the usual issues that accompany post-merger integration -- along with some that are particular to the airline industry -- come into play.

The industry has had a storied past in India, beginning in the early 20^th century when a host of private airlines tried their luck. Chaos reigned in the absence of workable regulations, and in 1953, a few years after independence, the airlines were nationalized and merged to set up two flag carriers -- Air India for international operations, and Indian Airlines for the domestic sector.

The private sector wasn't allowed to re-enter the arena until the early 1990s during the first flush of economic liberalization. Several promoters, including ambitious chicken farmers and individuals with underworld connections, took to the air. Most crash-landed, and a government in reform mode refused to bail them out. While the chicken farmers went back to their birds, others met a sorrier end: Takiyuddin Wahid, managing director of East West Airlines, was shot and killed in his Mumbai office. The airline collapsed.

A new crop of airlines has sprung up in the last few years. Deccan Aviation, India's first low-cost carrier (LCC), began operations in 2003. SpiceJet, also an economy carrier, took wing in 2005. Kingfisher Airlines, headed by the flamboyant liquor baron Vijay Mallya, started the same year. Other newcomers include GoAir and Paramount, while East West and another old-timer, ModiLuft, have returned.

It didn't take long for the shake-out to begin. In April 2007, Jet Airways took over Air Sahara for Rs. 1,450 crore. (Both of these second-wave companies started operations in 1993.) Kingfisher acquired an initial 26% stake in Air Deccan for Rs. 550 crore. (Mallya has subsequently paid more to increase his holdings.) And in the mother of all mergers, the government-owned Air India and Indian Airlines have joined to form the National Aviation Corporation of India Ltd. (NACIL).

More deals may be in the works. "We are open to buying out smaller domestic carriers," Naresh Goyal, Jet Airways' chairman, said at a recent news conference. Kapil Kaul, Indian subcontinent head of the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation, noted the effect of significant internal and external changes in the last four years. "Mergers were the only options left for many airlines," he said.

The main reason for the consolidation is economic. Both Deccan and Sahara were low cost carriers, and with the rising cost of fuel there was no way they could make a profit. Mergers with full-service carriers such as Kingfisher and Jet Airways were the alternative to closing shop.

A 'Relentless Focus on Reducing Costs'

"Deccan was founded on the simple but grand vision that every Indian must fly," CEO G.R. Gopinath said. "To achieve this, it was imperative to have a ruthless and relentless focus on reducing costs through eliminating everything that was not essential but without compromising on the fundamentals like safety and schedule integrity."

Reality didn't support Gopinath's vision. "Price inclusivity alone is not enough," he said. "It is also very important to be inclusive from a geographical point of view. The infrastructure constraints in different cities mean having different aircraft for different geographies, which goes against the very fundamentals of the LCC (low cost carrier) business model. So, geographical inclusivity also meant increasing complexities by way of inventory management, logistics and maintenance."

When airlines add aircraft and routes, Gopinath added, "it affects the cash flow and the profitability in the short run because any new route takes six months to one year to become profitable. It is also a socio-economic reality that for any new service or product, it takes some time for a consumer shift to happen.

"These were all challenges that we were aware of from the very beginning, but they did impose a huge strain on our resources," Gopinath said. "In addition, there were issues of infrastructure constraints, increasing fuel prices, wage inflation and excess capacity because of a whole lot of new players who came on the scene after Deccan."

The merger gives Kingfisher obvious economies of scale. It also provides an advantage peculiar to the Indian environment. Airlines must complete five years in the domestic market before they can fly the more lucrative overseas routes. Through the Deccan merger, Mallya hopes to get permission for international flights earlier than he would for a standalone Kingfisher. "That the merger would allow Kingfisher to use Deccan's license to start international operations was a major factor, but it was not the most important factor," Gopinath said.

Kingfisher says the merger -- which awaits formal court clearance even as operational integration has begun -- has helped in many ways. Synergies have helped cut costs. Greater passenger volume has allowed for the airline to renegotiate agreements. Schedule integrity has improved.

The story is the same at Jet Airways, which was India's largest domestic airline by far before the Kingfisher-Deccan combination. It still is, but by a slim margin. According to figures from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, Jet and JetLite (the new avatar of Sahara) had a market share of 29.9% as of the end of December. Kingfisher-Deccan had 29.3%. Indian Airlines had just 19%. (As standalone entities, Jet, Deccan and Indian all lost market share.)

An Inevitable Combination

While the Jet takeover of Sahara set the consolidation ball rolling, the Indian Airlines-Air India merger attracts the most attention. The combination was inevitable considering that domestic carrier Indian Airlines was losing market share year after year. The merger, originally blocked by the late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi more than 20 years ago, was a long time coming.

Raghu Menon took over as chairman and managing director of Air India on April 1. (Though the company is registered as NACIL, it will be known as Air India.) To Menon falls the job of seeing through the two national carriers' integration process. "There is a lot of work to be done," he said. "I have to take everybody on board."

His first challenge is to put the organization's financial house in order. In 2006-07, Air India lost Rs. 448 crore and Indian Airlines Rs. 240 crore. The results for 2007-08 are not yet ready, but Menon acknowledges that the losses could be higher. Analysts say the combined entity, in its first year reporting as such, could end up Rs. 1,400 crore in the red. A sale-and-leaseback deal for eight aircraft late in the financial year should stem the red ink a bit -- a common but only temporary fix.

The financial situation is likely to become worse before it gets better. The airline has placed orders for 111 aircraft from Boeing and Airbus; 31 have arrived. They have been financed through loans from the Export Import Bank of India and the market, and interest payments will take a toll.

The other big burden on Air India -- and all airlines operating outside country -- is the high price of air turbine fuel. "ATF accounts for 40% of our costs," Menon said. According to the Federation of Indian Airlines, a lobbying group, ATF prices are 70% to 95% higher in India than in other places for domestic operations. For international operations, prices are some 30% higher. "Fuel costs are an issue that can plague industry profitability," said Charles Dhanaraj, professor of management at the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University.

Plans to take Air India public have fallen through. "Our balance sheet won't allow it," Menon said. Instead, the company will turn to the government. Whether it will seek an equity infusion or debt has not been decided. Jet Airways, meanwhile, postponed a Rs. 1,600 crore rights issue last month for the third time and is looking for other funding options. "We will go to the market when conditions improve," Goyal told an early April news conference.

The Proof Is in Execution

The market may bounce back soon. But what about the airlines? In 2006-07, the domestic carriers had combined revenue of Rs. 15,000 crore and losses of Rs. 2,000 crore. With these numbers, consolidation has become an imperative.

Yet what looks good on the drawing board is not necessarily easy in execution. "The success of any merger depends entirely on the sensitivity and the maturity with which the management handles it," Deccan's Gopinath said. "Mergers will succeed when the managements know what to synergize and what to leave alone. It has to be done with sensitivity, intelligence and commitment."

Consider Air India's other challenges. A loss of Rs. 448 crore recorded by the international carrier in 2006-07 was mainly because of a Rs. 425 crore payment of salary arrears. At Air India's domestic counterpart, Indian Airlines, similar arrears are being negotiated. In the run-up to the merger, Indian Airlines ground staff went on strike over the issue last June.

The trade unions said they didn't stand in the way of the merger because they expected that their arrears (from January 1997) would be cleared. They weren't. That has caused some alienation, which is compounded by the fact that there are more than 15 unions in the organization, all with separate representatives.

While the salary structure is quantifiable, the problems of corporate culture are more difficult to get a handle on -- at Air India as well as the other alliances. As Deccan's Gopinath explains: "The merger does have a lot of inherent challenges because the business models of Deccan and Kingfisher are completely different and, therefore, have distinctly different cultures. Kingfisher has the mind-set of a premium service provider, whereas we have a low-cost culture. As the two brands cater to very different segments, it is essential to have very distinct, separate identities for both. At the same time, one needs to create a certain emotional bonding between the employees for them to feel part of one organization."

Kingfisher's Mallya wants to de-emphasize the "Simplify Deccan" brand and its low-cost aspirations, but Gopinath is still fighting to maintain his company's identity. The Economic Times recently ran this headline: "Branding snag likely to end Mallya-Gopinath honeymoon."

At Jet-Sahara, a first merger attempt was aborted with both sides threatening to sue. Acrimony reached such heights that observers felt there was no way to repair the deal. When the deal was finally signed, Sahara ended up as the "lite" version of Jet in more ways than one: Little of the old airline remains.

At Air India, Menon agrees that integration is a priority. But some things simply cannot be done. For instance, pilots and ground engineers of one airline cannot move freely to the other. They get licenses for specific aircraft and cannot jump to another without extensive training. "Indian Airlines' biggest aircraft is smaller than Air India's smallest aircraft," Air India executive director Jitendra Bhargava pointed out. Pilots and engineers existed in silos within Air India; they will live in a larger number of silos in the new organization.

Menon and Bhargava are banking on the infusion of new aircraft into the fleet. "We have suffered from an image problem because our planes were very old," Menon said. "Today, some of our flights --Mumbai-Delhi or the new nonstop flight to New York -- have only new aircraft. Ask anybody who has traveled by them. This is the real Maharaja service." (The Maharaja is Air India's popular mascot.) The image revamp is also being aided by the new, private airports coming up in India.

Menon expects the new organization to benefit from a hub-and-spoke system being put in place. Indian Airlines will carry passengers from various parts of India to Mumbai, where they will be transferred to Air India's international flights. Air India is also joining the Star Alliance, a network of international airlines.

Joint ventures are being set up for maintenance, repair and overhaul, and ground handling facilities. These will be offered to other airlines and bring in some revenue.

Another big issue is external to the company: the growing competition in the skies, which sparked the consolidation and shows no sign of abating. As Dhanaraj of the Kelley School of Business explains, "Indian commercial aviation is still in its infancy. Deregulation started only in the late 1980s and only over the past decade has it really taken off. Traffic demand in the primary corridors -- Mumbai-Delhi, for example -- tends to be very high and intense. In the secondary corridors -- Calcutta-Bhubaneswar, for example -- it is still erratic. Over the next decade, as new airports develop and airlines learn to manage the scheduling process, things should take off even more dramatically.

"The interesting competition in India is not only among the different airlines, but also between airlines and the railways," he added. "The railways are trying to increase their speed and efficiency and, if they can ramp up, they will give stiff competition to the airways, particularly for short-duration flights."

"I am not afraid of competition -- I welcome it," Menon said, adding that it will help Air India become more efficient. Meanwhile, new airlines are springing up in the domestic arena to compensate for the reduced number of players that consolidation has brought about. The older companies are foraying abroad, even to the West Asian routes (there are 5.5 million Indians in the Gulf) that have been so profitable for Air India. And foreign airlines are landing in the country in ever-increasing numbers.

Every industry faces competition. What's so different about civil aviation? "The airline industry still remains glamorous in spite of the high mortality rates," Dhanaraj said. Adds Gopinath: "The glamour quotient of the industry does attract entrepreneurs and investments. But that alone cannot create a successful business."

Source : Knowledge@Wharton

Customers from United Airlines and Jet Airways will benefit through an agreement signed by both carriers. The companies plan to offer codeshare service, significantly expanding the number of flights available to customers of both carriers to travel between the U.S. and India.

United's Mileage Plus® and Jet Airways’ JetPrivilege members would also have the opportunity to accrue and redeem frequent flyer miles on most flights.

Michael Whitaker, United's senior vice president – Alliances, International and Regulatory Affairs, said, "Whether our customers are traveling east or west, our new partnership with Jet Airways will provide 18 more flight options that will make international travel more convenient. Our business travelers will particularly enjoy service to one of the fastest growing regions and business markets in the world.”

© Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation.

May 22, 2008
Bangalore Journal
An Indian Airport Hurries to Make the First Flight
By SOMINI SENGUPTA

BANGALORE, India — For years, frequent fliers in this technology hub complained bitterly about having to suffer the indignities of a tattered and tiny airport scrunched in the middle of a busy city neighborhood.

Now, with a new one opening on Saturday, people are clamoring once more. This time, to keep the old airport open.

The reversal does not reflect a sudden bout of nostalgia, but rather the fear that the new airport, no matter how modern it was intended to be, seems destined to be the latest repository of India’s astonishing inability to plan for its future and fix its sagging infrastructure.

The way things stand now, the trip to the new airport, 21 miles outside town, will easily take 90 minutes from the city center, and even longer from the software companies that have turned Bangalore, also known as Bengaluru, into India’s own Silicon Valley.

India’s famously sluggish bureaucracy has meant that workers are only now scrambling to finish widening the main road to the new airport. The city water supply has yet to reach the area, making it impossible to begin construction on the shops and office towers that are supposed to sprout around the airport. Even though airport officials were ready to open on schedule, in March, air traffic controllers said they needed more time to train. Late Wednesday, airport officials said they had been told by the government to postpone the opening by one day, to Saturday.

Bangalore has company in its misery. Attempts to revamp roads and ports have run into chaos all over India, not least because the actual growth of this bustling nation of more than a billion people consistently outstrips even the most perspicacious planner’s vision for it.

Traffic was backed up the day a new highway toll plaza linking New Delhi to its new satellite boomtown, Gurgaon, opened this year because planners far underestimated growth in traffic.

A high-speed bus route in the heart of Delhi was lambasted recently for pinching into car lanes, and no one, including the cows, seemed quite sure of which lane to use anyway. Several other major projects are behind schedule and mired in graft, including a new national highway.

The hullabaloo over the new airport is only the latest parable of India’s growth. That tale begins with the government’s decision to sign a deal with a private consortium to build the airport, agreeing to close the old state-run one, and effectively giving the new one a monopoly.

Generous as it was to the developers, it apparently failed to account for the Indian zeal to fly. Air traffic in and out of Bangalore has more than doubled since construction began three years ago, compelling the developer to amend the design of the airport.

Built on 4,000 acres and modeled after the airport in Zurich, whose developers are working on this project, the new airport now promises to accommodate 11 million passengers in its first year.

Still, most road and rail links that the government had promised to build to the airport have been delayed or scrapped, in part because lawsuits over acquiring the land and in part because they involve 32 government agencies.

Adding to the confusion, the state has been in the grip of political squabbling for many months.

Today, with air traffic likely to keep growing, an influential civic lobby is pushing for both airports to operate. Bangalore City Connect, a private industry-financed group that advocates for better urban infrastructure, said failing to plan for future growth would only add to Bangalore’s woes.

Albert Brunner, chief executive of the new airport, declined to comment on the appeal to keep the old one open, except to point out that the new one has plenty of room to grow. “It is our goal to always provide an infrastructure which is sufficient for or even ahead of the demand,” he said in an e-mail message.

The government official responsible for transportation to the airport said “future-proofing” had been complicated by the city’s “unforeseen” growth.

“We have been developing infrastructure all along,” argued V. P. Baligar, principal secretary for commerce and industries for Karnataka state, of which Bangalore is the capital. “The growth of the population has been faster.”

One lawsuit holding up the expressway project concerns D. M. Dwarkanath, a retired executive of a state-owned company. He risks losing his small bungalow to make way for the route. A hospice for children with AIDS is also threatened.

Such cases have sown deep resentment among many people here, who wonder: Why do people have to make way for India’s frequent-flying classes, which are still relatively small?

“It is only for the rich people,” Mr. Dwarkanath said fuming. “They don’t have patience. They want to rush to the airplane. They want to sweep everyone out of the way. Why should we live? Sweep us into the sea!”

They further contend that the path of the proposed expressway has been amended to spare the properties of politically connected people, a charge Mr. Baligar denies. He says the national highway authority will decide who must make way for the highway.

While the lawsuits crawl through the courts and bureaucrats pass files from one agency to the next, patience wears thin on Victoria Road in Bangalore. On a recent weekday morning, laborers carried stones on their heads, repairing a storm drain and backing up the morning traffic along two narrow lanes.

M. N. Badrinath, a salesman who spends three to four hours a day on the road, was skeptical. By the time repairs on this road are finished, he surmised, there will be even more cars. “The promises are like castles in the air,” he said, as he tried to sneak through a police line and into the traffic. “Are they planning for the future or for the present?”

An auto-rickshaw driver, Chand Pasha, said as he waited for a green signal: “My life is in traffic. It cannot get more miserable than this.” The misery of Bangalore’s roads has brought an unexpected boon to G. R. Gopinath, whose low-cost airline, Deccan, expanded the ranks of India’s fliers.

Mr. Gopinath is in favor of keeping the old airport open. Even so, starting Saturday he will offer a helicopter shuttle for commuters. It will cost about $100 and take 10 minutes.

Source : The New York Times

22 May 2008, Saurabh Sinha, TNN

NEW DELHI: Domestic airlines will no longer be able to hold passengers who cancel their tickets to ransom by delaying refunds indefinitely or by asking them to fly again instead within a given time.

Acting on complaints, the government is set to issue new refund rules: airlines will have to issue refunds within a week and cannot swap refund for another flight.

Better still, the new rules make it mandatory for airlines to refund the entire amount of passenger service fee (Rs 225), congestion surcharge (Rs 150) and fuel surcharge (at present Rs 1,950 for short flights and Rs 2,350 for others) on ticket cancellation.

Because these three alone add up to Rs 2,325 for flights below an hour's duration and Rs 2,725 for others, many low-cost carriers have been advertising basic fares of Re 1, Rs 3, Rs 99 or even zero to give the impression that their fares are low and it is taxes and surcharge that have made flying expensive.

Once the new refund rules come into play, these carriers may be forced to come clean on their pricing strategy and offer basic fares that give them leverage to hold back some cancellation amount.

The proposed rules are part of the new civil aviation requirement (CAR) framed by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation and approved by the aviation ministry last week. DGCA is likely to notify these shortly.

The CAR takes note of passengers' long standing woes. "The issue of refund of tickets by airlines has become a major source of grievance among passengers. A large number of complaints are regularly received... (of) delay in refund of unused ticket, amount refunded and policy of not refunding ticket amount but to adjust that against tickets to be used for future travel in same airline within a limited period of time," it says.

The CAR severely indicts airlines, saying that though the government does not usually interfere in their commercial practices, "the volume of complaints necessitates some affirmative action to safeguard the interests of the travelling public."

It adds: "The matter has been discussed in several meetings with airlines (but) with no improvement in the system... It is now considered that the onus rests with the government to fix some minimum benchmarks."

Under these new benchmarks, airlines will have to make refunds for payments made by credit card within seven days of the cancellation. "In case of cash transactions, refunds shall be made immediately by the airline office from where the ticket was purchased," the CAR says.

Many airlines, especially low-cost ones, do not issue refunds for cancelled tickets. They deduct a cancellation charge and retain the balance which can be adjusted by the passenger for flying with the airline again within a certain time.

"This is a patently consumer-unfriendly move that we want to correct," said a senior official. The government consulted refund rules of several countries before coming out with its own stringent draft of rules.

Source : The Times of India

Will target internet savvy leisure and corporate travellers
By Anita Jain | Mumbai

Thomas Cook (India) Ltd. launched www.thomascook.in, a complete travel portal offering end-to-end travel solutions for both B2B and B2C customers, in Mumbai today. The portal will offer hotel inventories from UK based hotels4u.com, which was acquired by Thomas Cook in February this year. The website aims at targeting the internet savvy leisure and corporate travellers, travel agents and partners who will be integrated with the offline business of Thomas Cook India. They will also offer travel and travel related financial services to its customers.

The website provides for online booking of travel insurance, 800 holiday packages including Thomas Cook’s own 100 per cent holiday packages and offers Rail Europe passes and tickets. Apart from this, the portal features over 750 domestic and international airlines, over 30,000 hotels and 30 cruises. With the introduction of a separate portal for the Indian market, the company is positive about its future growth.

Madhavan Menon, Managing Director, Thomas Cook (India) Ltd, said, “We are currently working on the plan and will soon be ready to offer the inventory of 30,000 hotel inventories from all over the globe through hotels4u.com. Also, after the introduction of the inventories in Indian market, clients will be able to book and pay online for their hotel bookings which is at present active only for flight booking.”

Giving an insight into the salient features of the website, Amitabh Pandey, President and Head, E-Business said, “This initiative will extend our reach enormously. Our portal offers a whole range of travel products and related financial services including domestic and international flight booking, foreign travel insurance, hotels, cruises and Rail Europe tickets and passes. This channel will significantly augment our extensive distribution network.”

He further added, “We are going to increase the volumes in the flights, hotels, travel insurance and packages section. For cruises, we will add more options through our parent company Thomas Cook, which offers the highest number of cruises in Europe. Along with increasing the inventory, we are also going to enhance our payment gateways on the portal.”

With a view of huge potential in internet banking in India, the company is putting in efforts to enhance the services online. “At present, only HDFC bank is online for internet banking, soon we are going to link up with more banks including ICICI bank. We also plan to introduce foreign exchange service online. We are facing certain government constraints on selling foreign exchange online in India, and hence are in talks with Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to look into the matter.”

Source : TravelBizMonitor.com

The BIAL consortium has launched a new website providing information on the new Bengaluru International Airport (BIA), at http://www.bengaluruairport.com.

The website has a lot of information and is worth checking out. Please do keep in mind, that it is a work in progress.

Hot breaking news.

BIA launch has been postponed by 24 hours. The new launch date is 00:01 24/May/2008.

Stay Tuned for more information.

I have received a clarification from BIAL that the User Development Fee (UDF) is to be collected from ALL OUTBOUND INTERNATIONAL passengers. The amount of INR 1070 is inclusive of all taxes. So please make sure, you carry the correct amount of money with you.

BIAL has also appealed that passengers paying UDF please remit exact change.

A User Development Fee of Rs. 1070 will be collected from all outbound international passengers using the Bengaluru International Airport. The User Development Fee is towards the cost for construction and operation of the airport and has been approved by the Ministry of Civil Aviation of India.

Departure before or on 30 June, 2008
International Passengers traveling out of Bengaluru International Airport before or on 30 June, 2008 will have to make payment of the User Development Fee at the counters provided in the check-in hall or on the first floor before emigration check counters. Passengers should produce the receipt of payment at the time of emigration check. Payment can be made by cash, debit card or credit card (Visa/Mastercard only). If you are paying by cash you are requested to provide exact change for quicker processing. Please allow 10 minutes for the transaction during peak hours between 2200 hrs and 0300 hrs. And about 3-5 minutes at all other times.

Departure on or after 01 July, 2008
For passengers travelling out of Bengaluru International Airport on or after 01 July, 2008, the User Development Fee will be included in your ticket.

Exemptions
Infants under the age of 2 years and Airline Crew on duty are exempted from User Development Fee.

Express News Service

BANGALORE: Shifting all commercial aviation operations at Bengaluru International Airport on May 23 will put its operator Bangalore International Airport Limited and the Ministry of Civil Aviation in rank contempt as the matter is sub-judice and the Contempt of Court Act mandates that interference in the course of judicial proceeding constitutes criminal contempt which is punishable with a jail sentence, retired judge of the High Court, Justice Michael F Saldanha, told this website's newspaper.

"The Karnataka High Court (KHC) has submitted a PIL for continuance of commercial operations at HAL Airport. KHC having been prima-facie satisfied that a case has been made out, has admitted the petitions by citizens. At the stage of interim relief, the High Court has passed a speaking order which has been endorsed and confirmed by the Supreme Court, indicating that the whole issue requires reconsideration. But BIAL's latest attempt to illegally shift all operations to BIA is to present the court with a fait-accompli and to render the court proceedings infructous," said Justice Saldanha.

The law requires that the parties before the court must report back to the court with regard to the outcome of all that has transpired relating to the interim direction and abide by the order the court passes. Before completing this procedure, shifting operations at BIA is an illegal method to force the issue and by-pass the court.

Source : The New Indian Express

Govt Studying Options, Wants Some Flights From Old Facility
Saurabh Sinha & Anshul Dhamija |TNN

Source : The Times of India

New Delhi/Bangalore: Less than 48 hours before HAL airport shuts down and the Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) takes off, the Centre has made a U-turn on its decision of having only one airport in Bangalore.

Civil aviation minister Praful Patel told TOI: “The ministry is not happy with having only one airport.” The government is exploring all legal options of keeping HAL airport open for some flights. But, for the time being, the existing facility will have to close for all commercial operations from May 23.

“Big cities need more than one airport today. It’s unfortunate that contractual obligations, based on a bidding process undertaken by the previous government, have forced old airports at Bangalore and Hyderabad to shut down. The modernization of Delhi and Mumbai airports, undertaken by us, does not have any such condition,” a concerned Patel said.

“Unfortunately, this kind of thinking was not reflected in Hyderabad and Bangalore by the past government. We are not happy with this situation and are exploring all angles to keep the existing airports open alongside the new ones,” the minister said.

Patel’s statement comes after his ministry had announced the closure of the HAL airport after a crucial meeting was held between the government and the BIAL stakeholders on May 12.

TOI had reported that the government was considering keeping the HAL airport open for 80-seater short-haul flights and cargo flights. DGCA sources had confirmed the government’s thinking.

It is learnt that the ministry is poring over the bid documents made for the new airport — which was awarded to a Siemens-Zurich Airport-L&T consortium — to find a way out. The Centre is also looking at the traffic projections that have been overtaken.

Says aviation expert Devesh Agarwal: “In the past three years, Bangalore’s passenger traffic has grown by over 250%.” Currently, HAL airport handles 11 million passengers. “The bidding process would have certainly been different had it been undertaken by this
government. I would have preferred to keep both airports open. We’re trying to find some way out,” said Patel.

Members of the Bangalore City Connect (BCC), a citizens’ group comprising industry leaders, experts and the public, had voiced a similar point of view.

BCC member V Ravichander had said: “When a global tender was floated for building a new airport in Bangalore, nowhere did it mention that HAL airport had to be closed down. Only after months of re-negotiation with the Centre did the no-airportwithin-150-km clause come into force.”

In a scenario of rising demand and intense competition between Full Service Carriers and Low Cost Carriers in India, regional airlines are emerging to take the lead discovers Anita Jain

The Indian civil aviation sector is poised for a quantum growth with growing levels of domestic and international tourism traffic. With the upward surge, the Indian Low Cost Carrier (LCC) sector is driving this change by successfully tapping 45 per cent of the Indian aviation market share. To cope with increasing demand, the supply and competition between airlines is on the rise. From 2005, about ten companies have applied for scheduled airlines licenses, in order to enter the race. Full service carriers focused more on international routes while the LCC sector focused on the metro and mini metro routes. Indian regional aviation takes wing The government, in order to enhance connectivity to tier II and tier III cities in the country and reduce congestion at airports in the major metros, introduced the regional airlines policy in August last year. However, Indian Airlines took the lead way back in 1996 with the introduction of Alliance Air. Its objective was to serve the regional air travel market. The airline was plagued by the fact that its fleet (mainly Boeing 737s), was not only ill-equipped to operate in regional airports, but also not suited for short haul flights. In addition, its four ATR aircraft could not be pushed for service elsewhere, as they were positioned to serve the North East market. With the boom in the aviation sector after 2003, several players showed an interest in launching airlines with national operations. Approvals for nine of these were pending till August 2007, when the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) announced a separate category of airlines meant to serve India, beyond its big cities. Soon after the policy was announced, some airlines awaiting national licenses, reapplied for regional permits. These included Star Aviation, Trans India Aviation, Air Dravida and Emric Aviation, all of which are looking to start operations in South India. In this region, air traffic outpaced other regions, in 2007. Under the new regional aviation policy, which covers both aircraft and helicopter operators, airlines are supposed to operate primarily between airports of any of the four regions (North, South, West and East/North-East). Thus, a regional airline in a particular region operates from one metro to all non-metros in that region. However, airlines which have a license to operate in the Southern region can operate flights between the three metros in that region — Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad. Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the governing body for aviation in India, introduced a separate category for the regional airlines permit. The category is governed by the following guidelines: Minimum initial startup capital will be required according to classification of the fleet operated (weight of the aircraft being 40,000 kg, at take off). A regional airline should operate with three aircraft in one year with five at the end of two years. For airlines with aircraft of a take-off mass of less than 40,000 kg, the paid-up capital should be Rs 12 crore for three aircraft. Two additional planes will ensure a required total paid-up capital of Rs 20 crore. To ensure that such airlines remain viable, they should have a paid-up capital of Rs 30 crore, along with three aircraft to begin with. Addition of each aircraft will require Rs 10 crore extra, subject to a maximum of Rs 50 crore of equity. Regional fixed wings continue to grow Since 2003, passenger traffic has grown at almost 25 per cent, annually. This growth is not restricted only to metros. According to Airports Authority of India (AAI) estimates, traffic in tier-II and tier-III cities (such as Ahmedabad, Pune, Goa, Amritsar, Coimbatore and Vishakhapatnam) is expected to grow by at least 20 per cent, per year, until 2012. “As the impact of the Indian growth engine reaches smaller towns, the travel demand in such cities will increase. Further, increasing congestion and real estate costs in the metros will make non-metro cities attractive destinations for business. About 18 Special Economic Zones (SEZs) are coming up in India, mostly in tier II and tier III cities,” says Olivier Kobisch, DC/EM – Market Analysis Manager, ATR. “According to recent research, the business segment constitutes up to 65 per cent of the Indian aviation sector, while the remaining 35 per cent is from leisure and VFR segments. Out of that 65 per cent of business travel segment, 78 per cent fly to metro cities, while of that 78 per cent, 87 per cent fly from metros to tier II and tier III cities,” says Koustav Dhar, President – Commercial & Special Projects, MDLR Airlines Ltd. According to Dhar, there are about 400 aircraft operating in India, of which only 68 are capable of regional operations. Currently, only 32 aircraft are operated by regional carriers. Thus, there is a huge requirement for regional airlines to increase fleet size, in order to absorb the growing demand. “The regional aviation sector has the capacity to add 300-350 aircraft, to its current fleet size,” adds Dhar. Waiting for approval: Some regional airlines that are waiting to begin operations include Air Dravida, Trans India Aviation Pvt. Ltd, Emric Aviation Pvt. Ltd. and King Air. Regional airlines operate with hub-and-spoke networks; they connect non-metro cities in a region, to the main metro city of that area. From this point, full-service airlines carry traffic to other metros and international routes. “The existing policy framework in aviation encourages regional airlines, as it waives landing and parking charges for smaller aircraft. Regional airlines can benefit from lower parking charges, when they use non-metro airports as hubs. The US has a mature regional airline model wherein one out of every four domestic passengers flies a regional airline,” says Jerome Cheung, Manager of Asia Pacific – Markets & Airline Analysis, Bombardier Aerospace. “By introducing a separate category for regional airlines, the government has unintentionally solved a coordination problem for the third-party MRO business. There have been some moves by the industry, to set-up third party MROs that can service all aircraft (including Boeing and Airbus). It creates a natural demand for smaller aircraft, 50-100 seater ATRs, Embrears and CRJs,” says Steve Horner, Director – Marketing India, ELF. To tap the regional market Indian Airlines re-branded Alliance Air, in September last year as Air India Regional. Currently, Paramount Airways, Jagson Aviation and Star Aviation have got a green signal from MoCA, to operate as regional carriers. Air Dravida, Trans India Aviation Pvt. Ltd., Emric Aviation Pvt. Ltd. and King Air are awaiting approval. New players like Bird Group will consider regional carrier operations, by 2009. Regional skies getting busier According to Praful Patel, Civil Aviation Minister, regional air connectivity is still very low. Patel comments, “Regional aviation is the future. There is plenty of opportunity in connecting tier II and tier III cities with smaller airlines. ATF is cheaper and landing and navigation charges for 80-seater and smaller planes are waived.” Tax on jet fuel for smaller planes (which the regional carriers will use), is set at a low four per cent, compared to 30-40 per cent that FSCs pay. M Thiagarajan, Managing Director, Paramount Airways says, “Regional airlines can work well as feeder airlines. These in the South link a number of less connected places; for example, Hubli, Belgaum, Bellary, Salem, Tirupati and Pondicherry. Any airline, which has a 20-50 seater aircraft can carry passengers and feed them to larger airlines in metropolitan cities.” On the infrastructure front, the government is developing 33 non-metro airports. “There is definitely huge potential in the regional business, but DGCA should also provide financial concessions for airlines. ‘Watchhour’ charges should be waived, as well,” concludes Dhar. Despite the infrastructure crunch, the regional airlines policy is grabbing attention. This seems to be the only way for airlines to graduate to having national operations. MoCA is not approving any new FSCs. Regional airlines, with a good track record, may acquire national status in the coming years. As air routes to metros become increasingly congested, airlines see an untapped market in smaller cities and with regional airlines these might become busy hubs. The start of regional airlines opens another interesting chapter in Indian aviation. The government has set the right tone by creating a competitive environment. It should now let the market work and step in only to remove policy constraints or anti-competitive behaviour. Source : TravelBizMonitor.com

21 May 2008, Saurabh Sinha
Source : The Times of India

NEW DELHI: Coming to the rescue of domestic airlines, government has decided not to accept GMR and GVK’s proposals to hike Delhi and Mumbai airport charges by 10%. The privatisation pact allowed both the GMR and GVK groups — which are modernising these airports — to increase aeronautical charges levied on airlines and passengers, after two years of taking over the projects. With rising oil prices putting airlines under severe financial stress, aviation minister Praful Patel has decided not to allow this hike for time being, as this move would increase pressure on the industry. "It is not an easy time for airlines because of high aviation turbine fuel (ATF) prices. While average air fares are lower than 2004 levels, ATF is six times more expensive now from that time. Airlines are making huge losses and any further burden like higher aeronautical charges will not be allowed till the situation improves," Patel told TOI. The monthly ATF price hikes alone have led to airlines imposing such steep fuel surcharges that flying has again become costlier and growth is falling from double digits. "Airlines have inducted large number of planes in last four years. Because of high fares, load factors are falling. Now airlines are not going to add much capacity this year and for the first time in past three years, growth is being curtailed to single digit," Patel said. From the heady 20% to 30% domestic sector growth recorded in past three years, this April recorded a 8.65% increase in passengers traffic over same month last year. Patel warns that unless states reduce sales tax on ATF and surcharges fall, growth could stick to single digit level. "Globally, ATF accounts for 15 to 17% of total operating cost of an airline. Here jet fuel contributes to 40 to 45% of operating cost, which is among the highest in the world," he said. On an average, the proposed 10% hike would have meant an increase of Rs 20 for a passenger. For departing passengers, this will mean a hike of Rs 10 in the existing passenger security fees of Rs 225 paid by fliers at the time of booking tickets as also higher car park charges, said sources. For incoming passengers, it would mean paying more to cover the higher landing and parking charges levied on airlines by the developers. Airlines made it clear that they would not be able to absorb any extra cost and would pass everything to passengers. The Delhi and Mumbai airports were allowed to charge 10% higher aeronautical charges from third year and the fourth year charges will be determined by either the Airport Economic Regulatory Authority (if in place by then) or by the civil aviation ministry. But for now, the government has made it clear it can’t allow a 10% hike.

The man who pioneered the step forward
S R Valluri

Improving the air travel facilities in Bangalore was a long-felt need. Once, in the late '80s, Dr R Narasimha, my successor as the Director of NAL, and I were returning from Thiruvananthapuram after attending a meeting in ISRO. We noted how crowded the airport was and how badly it was designed. We noted that more often than not, Indian airports were obsolete even before they were opened for operations.

There was no forward planning in anticipation of future requirements. I proposed to Narasimha that we should do something about it, and that I would be glad if NAL were to formally obtain the approval of the Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation to study the issue, and that I would be glad to take on the responsibility of studying the problem. The then Secretary, Mr Ganesan, readily agreed. As a prelude, I studied the plans of several international airports all over the world. I also studied the air traffic growth pattern over the years in Bangalore and the potential increase in the national and international traffic in the years to come. It appeared to me that the design of the airport should be based upon a modular concept, with more arrival and departure gates with aerobridges being built to respond to increase in traffic as time goes on.

I also felt that to reduce the traffic congestion near the airport, it should be channelled near the airport itself to different parts of the city, while providing adequate parking facilities. I used HAL airport in Bangalore as an example to sketch a modularly designed terminal. As soon as the feasibility report was submitted, I got a telephone call from the then chairman of HAL, saying that they would not like civil operations to continue forever from their airport. I told him that ours was only a feasibility study about how to build terminals with potential scope for expansion. We submitted the study to the Karnataka government also. Concurrently, Mr Ramanathan, earlier Chairman of the International Airport Authority, also put up a proposal to the Karnataka government. Following these developments, the Ministry of Civil Aviation constituted a committee under his chairmanship with wide representation from the interested parties. The Chairman of HAL retired and another one took over. The new chairman took the view that civil operations need not be shifted. At that time, HAL was apparently earning about Rs 15 crores (Rs150 million) per year as landing fees, certainly not a small sum. But it was too late. The decision to shift the operations had been made. The Karnataka government offered land about 75 km from the city centre. I could not visit the place. The other committee members approved it. Clearly, they did not do their homework or appreciate the problems air travellers would face if the airport were to be located so far away. The time for travel from city center to airport for travel to nearby cities like Chennai, would double; clearly not an acceptable solution.

Mr Ramanathan then left for the US on a vacation and asked me to take over the responsibility of conducting the meetings in the interim. I met the then Chief Secretary of the Government of Karnataka and asked him whether the government would be willing to give alternative land and compensation, if the Air Force would be willing to give the Yelahanka Training Command Air Force Base to be developed as the international airport. He said that if the Air Force would agree, he would arrange for them to get as much land as they wanted, anywhere in Karnataka, and full compensation for the facilities they would be leaving behind. Rough estimates indicated that the government would have to pay about Rs 500 crores (Rs 5 billion) as compensation to the Air Force. It was clear to me that sooner or later, the Air Force would have to shift the operations of the Training Command from Yelahanka, as Bangalore by then had already started expanding rapidly in that direction. With the assurance from the Chief Secretary, I called for a meeting of the committee in Delhi to examine this alternative. The approval was unanimous, with the Air Force representatives stating that while they agreed in principle, they had no authority to speak on behalf of the Air Force. The Air Force said, "We always take and never give". So ended the efforts to develop Yelahanka Training Command AFB as an international airport. I then once again approached the Chief Secretary and briefed him about the development and sought an alternative location closer to the city, as the one offered was too far. Land near Devanahalli was offered as an alternate site. It is about 35 km from the city centre.

By that time, Mr Ramanathan returned, and we all went to see the place and concluded it would be a good alternative. Proximity to Yelahanka and the HAL airport would pose some air traffic control problems, but the committee felt that a common air traffic control for the three airports should be able to handle the problems. It was also recognized that a new satellite city of about 100,000 people would come up for setting up high-technology industry near the airport. It was also proposed that a six-lane highway as well as a train shuttle should be built to connect the airport with a city checkin terminal where passengers could check in and obtain their boarding passes. All these recommendations were apparently accepted. While approving the airport, the government proposed that it should be self-supporting. In a sense, this was a tall order. The airport was expected to cost about Rs 1,250 crores (Rs 12.5 billion) and that has been currently updated to Rs 1,900 crores (Rs 19 billion). Estimates indicate that to make the airport self-supporting, there would have to be about 1000 landings a day, based upon the current landing charges. Currently there are about 150. It is inevitable that to cover the cost of operations and running the airport, the operators will have to charge about Rs 500 per passenger, if the terminal operations are not subsidized. It remains to be seen what the airport operators will do. Incidentally, it was also found that the HAL airport would be able to handle the traffic for the next 25 years or so. But it became a matter of prestige to have a separate international airport, and the politicians had their way.

(This is an extract from the book Events in Life published in 2006)

Source : http://bangalorebuzz.blogspot.com/2008/05/man-who-pioneered-step-forward.html

My personal additions.
Given the rate of explosive growth, Bangalore is at 448 flights per day already, and expected to reach 550 within the next 24 months.

Globally, airports are shifting away from aeronautical revenue to non-aeronautical revenue like duty free shopping, airport shop rentals, "airport cities" development, etc.

When BIAL was envisaged in the late 1990's, the aero to non-aero revenues were 70:30. Today they are typically 40:60 or 45:55. BIAL has been given a huge tract of land to develop and rent, to compensate them, keeping this in mind.

I see no reason for them to levy a UDF.

May 23, 2008

Bengaluru International Airport Will Become Operational on Friday, May 23, 2008

Source : BIAL Website

Bangalore, May 16, 2008: Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) today announced that the Bengaluru International Airport will become operational on Friday, May 23, 2008 following approval from the Ministry of Civil Aviation. The airport will be formally inaugurated in the presence of the State and Central Government on a suitable date in the month of June 2008.

The switch to the new airport will take place at midnight (00:01 hours of May 23). All flights landing and departing after midnight will operate from the new airport and flights arriving before midnight (on May 22, 2008) and departing after midnight will also operate from the new airport.

In preparation for the launch of the Bengaluru International Airport, the CISF (Central Industrial Security Force) has been handed over the responsibility for security. In a formal ceremony held this week, the CISF team led by Digvijay Kumar Singh, Commandant, CISF was welcomed by Albert Brunner, CEO, BIAL. The CISF has been inducted into the new airport and 770 CISF personnel will be deployed at BIAL for airport security purposes. This number will increase to 1039 including the land side security.

In the first phase of security coverage, CISF will exercise access control to the Terminal Building and to the airside through control of the perimeter gates. A ring of security will be laid along the perimeter including manning of all the watch towers. The security cover will further be advanced on May 20, 2008 when the CISF will apply all security norms in compliance with the regulations laid down by the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security.

The Commandant, CISF assured BIAL that they will employ security procedures in sync with ICAO so that passenger satisfaction level is at par with international airports. In the coming months, the CISF at the new airport plans to be ISO 9001:2000 certified.

The CISF provides security to critical infrastructure as well as all the major centres of economic growth in India. It also protects the national assets and highly vital and sensitive installations which are exceedingly critical from a national perspective.

About Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL)
BIAL is a Public Limited Company under Indian Companies Act formed to build, own and operate Bangalore‘s Greenfield private sector-owned and operated airport – the Bengaluru International Airport. Private promoters hold a 74% stake in BIAL while the State holds the remaining 26%.

For any clarification, please contact
Assistant Manager - Corporate Communications
Bangalore International Airport Limited
118, Gayathri Lakefront, Outer Ring Road,
Hebbal, Bangalore - 560024, India
Phone: +91 80 2354 0000
Web: www.bialairport.com

The new airport is a reflection of the local culture
Creating jobs for the locals and giving a boost to the economy


City locals a part of airport operations

The new airport has made substantial efforts to make sure that it is reflective of the local culture and heritage. From a recruitment point of view, qualifications and expertise being equal, preference has been shown to Kannadigas in the organization. This has resulted in the employment of 53% Kannadigas out of the total employee strength of 473 (as on March 31st 2008). Even more encouraging is the fact that out of the 185 managers, Kannadigas account to 74 (40% of the total managers).

BIAL has also been giving new applicants from Karnataka, and particularly candidates from the neighbourhood of Bengaluru International Airport, the attention they deserve. Since the end of February 2008, BIAL has received around 2000 resumes from Karnataka local and 574 of these resumes have been submitted by candidates claiming to have lost land when the land for the new airport was originally acquired by KIADB. Out of these 574 applicants, 210 have already been recruited at the airport. All the other resumes were further classified into qualification groups and interviewed for positions of relevance

Added attention was paid by BIAL by making sure that the various concessionaires also hired local Kannadiga talent, out of this talent pool provided by BIAL. A copy of all applications received was handed over to the concessionaires for further screening. 80% of the recruits are Kannadigas. Total recruitments made by the Concessionaires are around 2750 employees.

In addition, all signage inside the airport is also in Kannada, English and Hindi. The design of the logo identity as well as the airport name also reflects the essence of the garden city.

Albert Brunner, CEO of BIAL said, “In future the increase in capacity will lead to more recruitments by the concessionaires as well as BIAL. BIAL will make sure that the preference is given to the Kannadigas as far as possible. Furthermore, ours is possibly one of the few organizations that encourage the non-Kannadiga employees of BIAL to learn the local language by offering language classes.”

Source : Bangalore.Praja.in

RETAINING HAL
Expect a bumpy ride to the future
By V Ravichandar

Keeping the HAL airport open is an option that needs to be pursued before it is dispensed with.

As we are raising this issue of retaining the HAL airport, I had a mail from a friend in the US, saying, “I am amused to see the 11th hour fuss on the airport. Where were you guys all these years?” He went on to add that it seemed a bunch of pampered Bengalooru billionaires were cribbing about the imminent loss of their backyard airport.

In addition, another point often raised is “What about the damage among the international investment community about our commitment to Public Private Partnership (PPP), if we keep reneging on signed contracts.” And this is followed with the final blow – “Was not one of your own, the first Chairman of the new airport?”

First, Let us get the past out of the way since navigating into the future by looking at the rear view mirror is of limited use. The new Bangalore airport had a creditable first achievement. The consortium partner for Bangalore’s greenfield airport was selected based on a global tender and not on a MoU basis as done for Hyderabad. The global tender selection process had detailed metrics and it did not promise that the existing HAL airport would be closed.

We can guess and try constructing the past since we do not have access to this data. In 2001-02, when the BIAL partner was selected, the annual passenger traffic was 2.3 mn (million) passengers. In the five year preceding 2001, the average annual growth rate was around 5 per cent. We think that BIAL expected an opening traffic of 4.5 mn passengers in 2008 since the initial terminal design was for that capacity. This represents a 12 per cent per year growth assumption for the period 2001-2008.

Currently, with an actual demand of around 10.1 mn in 2007-08, the demand actually grew at 28 per cent per year during 2001-08. Back then the 12 per cent per year growth projection presumably formed the basis to project revenue and financial return. The concession of “no airport within 150 km” in the contract was presumably negotiated on this basis.

We now have the following situation – Opening capacity at BIAL of around 12 mn passengers annually that can at best go up to 15 mn passengers till another runway comes up in 2014. Demand of 15 mn is conservatively estimated to be reached by end 2010 (20 per cent growth in next 2 years). So from 2011-2014, Bangalore will be starved of runway side air capacity with BIAL by 2-3 mn passengers / year. Add to this cargo requirements and it is reasonable to surmise we have a major problem going forward. Keeping HAL open is an option that needs to be pursued before it is dispensed with.

In the light of the above should Bangaloreans adopt a “do nothing”approach (dereliction of duty by future generations) or do we say to BIAL and the government “swalpa adjust maadi” vis-à-vis the contract that was granted on lower assumptions. My view is that the contract is not cast in stone. There are serious capacity concerns and the city is not future proofed with the plans BIAL have in place.

Even the High Court and Supreme Court have seen merit in the public interest argument to keep two airports open. Further, for a rapidly growing developing economy like India, conserving working infrastructure assets makes sense. Closing a working asset (built with tax payer money) like HAL airport especially when it is known that we are going to run into a capacity constraint seems a dumb option to pursue. BIAL should be compensated for keeping HAL open.

This brings us to our credibility on adhering to contracts among the international investors. I do not subscribe to the view that future PPP in the infrastructure sector will be affected. It will suffer if there is arbitrariness in the decision to keep HAL open. If BIAL is compensated then rule of law applies and the process is transparent. On the contrary, I would submit that if BIAL (or any infrastructure investor) keeps harping on contract concessions (obtained with low projections) even in the face of overwhelming evidence to the need for modification it would question their bona fides – did they enter the Indian market only to negotiate a “sweetheart” deal and keep insisting on implementation.

Bangalore has critical infrastructure deficits that are already impacting investments, job creation and growth prospects across the spectrum of society. State and City competitiveness will be further affected if we do not have fool proof measures to ensure that air travel and cargo planning has enough head space to manage demand requirements.

If in 2001-02, the conservative projections warranted giving a concession of “no HAL airport”, the likely situation by 2011 warrants a consideration of 2 airports now. And to my friend who says “where were you guys in the past”, I pose the question - “What do you and Bangaloreans propose to do with advance information of the above nature”.

(The writer is CMD, Feedback Consulting)

(c) The Deccan Herald

Jet Airways confirmed plans to launch daily Mumbai-Shanghai-San Francisco service on 14-Jun-08, using B777-200-ER equipment.

The carrier plans to cater to business and leisure travel between the two cities, with a significant Chinese population residing in San Francisco. Jet Airways plans to tailor its China product to the market’s needs, and has commenced recruitment of Chinese crew.

Jet Airways will be the first Indian carrier offering connectivity to San Francisco, beating Kingfisher Airlines which announced plans to launch non-stop services there in Aug-08. The carrier’s service to San Francisco will also be Jet Airways’ fourth daily connection from India to North America, following the launch of services to New York's JFK and Newark airports, and Toronto Pearson International Airport, within the past year.

A new bilateral agreement between India and China allows for Jet Airways to operate to San Francisco using Shanghai as its first Asian transit hub. The agreement permits each country’s carriers to operate 42 services per week to/from each country to three beyond points, with no more than 2 points in one region. India specified the US and Canada as one region, Australia and New Zealand as the second region and Asia as the third region for its beyond points, while China chose Africa, Middle East (including Gulf area) and Europe as three beyond points for its carriers.

(c) Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation. Date posted: 19-May-08.

Mangalore Airport Traffic up by 92% : Surpasses Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai

Times of India

• Mangalore airport sees phenomenal growth of 92%
  
• Surpasses Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai
  
• Third fastest growing tier-II city
  
• Airport handles 42 international arrivals and departures per week
  
• Handles 28 domestic arrivals and departures per day
  
• Even on cargo front, impressive growth of 39%

Mangalore, May 18: Mangalore has shot to fame as the city’s Bajpe airport has recorded a phenomenal growth in air traffic movement of 92% in February 2008 compared to the corresponding period in the previous year.

Mangalore Airport's new terminal will have this look when the work is completed.

According to a report on latest air traffic trends issued by the Airports Authority of India (AAI), Mangalore airport has reported the largest growth in south India surpassing metros like Mumbai, Bangalore and Chennai, and is the third fastest growing tier-II city in India
after Agartala (95.2%) and Indore (105.9%).

The average national growth in air traffic movement in the country for February ’08 was 18% over the same period in ‘07.

According to the AAI report card, the increase in the number of low-cost airlines and international airlines is fuelling the growth of air traffic in these secondary cities. Bangalore is no more the gateway city to Mangalore, as now airlines operate direct flights from Mumbai and other metro cities. Recently, lowcost carrier Deccan launched a new flight connecting Mangalore to Kochi. National low-cost carrier Air India Express will also be upping its frequency in and out of Mangalore as it adds more flights to the Gulf region as well as metro cities in India.

“As Bangalore gets more and more saturated, emerging regional hubs like Mangalore are going to benefit. Mangalore has traditionally attracted the student and leisure traffic, but of late it’s attracting a lot of business traffic especially from the IT sector, forcing airlines to increase their services,” said Kapil Kaul, CEO (Indian subcontinent & Middle East), Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation.

Mangalore saw a 67% growth in domestic air traffic movement in February, in comparison to the national average of 17.4%. At present, the airport handles 42 international arrivals and departures per week and 28 domestic arrivals and departures per day. Incidentally, Bajpe airport is the only airport in the state to operate two runways. The new Bengaluru International Airport will get its second runway only in 2014.

Even on the cargo front Mangalore reported an impressive growth of 39% in the year ended March 30, 2008 over the previous year.

Mangalore Airport director - M R Vasudeva

Bajpe airport director M R Vasudeva, said, “More infrastructure facilities had to be added to the arrival terminal due to the increase in operations by domestic and international carriers.”

And this spurt in air traffic has helped the airport record an impressive 950% growth in operating profit for the year ended March 30, 2008. It clocked an operating profit of Rs 9 crore up from Rs 83 lakh reported in the previous fiscal. Total revenue of the airport stood at Rs 19 crore for the year gone by.

And the growth is likely to continue to remain at these starry heights as a new terminal building will be up and running by February 2009.

Source : www.daijiworld.com