AAI has a plan to quicken your boarding process at IGI and Mumbai airport

The Airport Authority of India (AIA) is planning to chuck out the small and slow-moving turboprops with an eye on optimising the capacity of large airports like Delhi and Mumbai.
Turboprop aircrafts are smaller in size and are often considered as a cross between a piston prop airplane and a turbine engine jet. Turboprops are specifically designed to be the most efficient at low altitudes and slower speeds under mph. If flown at correct altitude and airspeed they burn less fuel.
Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport and Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaja International Airport, are two of the busiest in the country handling two-third of the air traffic that India witnesses.
To utilise the capacity of the airports, AIA plans to shift turboprops out.
AAI plans to increase the hourly aircraft movement and the passenger handling capacity of the airports. "The runway occupancy time of turboprops is much higher than other planes. We are not saying that turboprop flights under regional connectivity scheme (RCS, which fly to smaller airports) should be stopped. But if Delhi and Mumbai are currently connected to a city by turboprop and that city’s airport can take an Airbus A-320 or Boeing 737 type aircraft, airlines should shift to those planes,”  AAI chairman Guruprasad Mohapatra said.
31/08/18 Economic Times

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More farmers give consent for airport land

Noida:  The Yamuna Authority on Thursday claimed that 1,300 farmers in Jewar had so far given their written consent to hand over 503 hectares of land for the airport and more farmers had expressed their willingness to part with the land.
On Thursday alone, 115 farmers had given consent to acquire a total of 70 hectares for the airport. The government has to acquire 1,334 hectares in Jewar.
The UP government owns an additional 116 hectares in the neighbourhood. Sources said that 42% farmers have so far given their consent and 28% more farmers have to give their nod to meet the 70% bar before the land acquisition begins. The district administration and YEIDA are hopeful about getting the required number in a few days, though the deadline was August 31. The land owners need to fill a detailed form mentioning their name, complete address, details of family members, details of property and land records, etc. They also need to mention if there are any tenants living on the premises. Further, it must be clearly stated if there is any dispute over the earmarked property. The land owners have also been asked to state their opinion about the airport project. They have to then submit the form with signature of a witness from the village. The district administration and Yamuna Authority also want the land owners to submit their photo and Aadhar card with the consent form.
31/08/18 Times of India

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Bhubaneswar-Ahmedabad Direct Flights From September 1

The direct flight service from Bhubaneswar to Ahmedabad is all set to start from September 1 onwards, the authorities of the Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA) informed on Thursday.
The direct flight of Indigo Airlines (6E 953/ 6E 954) has been scheduled to depart Bhubaneswar at 11:50 AM and reach Ahmedabad at 2:10 PM. Likewise, it leave Ahmedabad at 8:55 AM and reach in Bhubaneswar Airport at 11: 20 AM.
31/08/18 Odisha News Insight

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Bird-hits fly high at Mumbai airport, RTI reply reveals it's up by 21%

Despite several measures being taken at Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA) to keep birds away from the airfield, the number of bird-hit incidents have gone up over the years, shows Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA)'s data accessed by DNA under Right To Information (RTI) Act.

Between January 2008 and July 2018, 205 incidents of birds hitting aircraft at Mumbai airport were reported to DGCA.

Out of these, 205 incidents, 85 were reported between 2008 and 2012 followed by 105 between 2013 and 2017. This also means an increase of around 21  per cent  when  bird  hit data between 2008-2012 is compared  with bird hit data between 2013 to 2017.
Bird-hit or bird-strike at times results in aircraft having to apply emergency brakes on runway of making emergency landing, in case the aircraft is flying. The airlines or airport operator report all suspected or confirmed bird hits to the DGCA.
31/08/18 Mehul R Thakkar/DNA

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New terminal building at Jaipur Airport soon

Jaipur: An action plan is being worked out to handle the rising footfall at the Jaipur Airport. For the same, a new terminal building will be added to the already existent terminal 1 and terminal 2 to ensure smooth passenger flow that has been on a rise since last few years. If this building comes into operation, the airport will be seven times the current infrastructure.

Sources said that a consultant has been appointed for the work and tender documents are being prepared and after this tender will be issued. All the planning work has been done with and on ground the work will take form from January.

The new terminal building will be made in area of about 1,25,000 square metre, informed the airport director Jaydeep Balhara while speaking to DNA. As per the report issued by airport authority, in the month of June last year 3,28,658 passengers visited Jaipur Airport while the number shot up to 4,29,920 in June this year showing an increase of 30 per cent. It is expected that the passenger rush will further increase in the coming years as Jaipur’s connectivity with other cities will come into play.
31/08/18 DNA

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Tyre burst disrupts runway operations at IGI

New Delhi: Runway operations at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport were disrupted for nearly an hour on Thursday after an Air India flight from Jammu burst a tyre upon landing in the afternoon, sources said. The plane was landing on runway 11/29 of the airport and eventually halted at a taxiway, resulting in disruptions until it was safely towed.
Sources said flight delays were recorded, however, no injuries were reported and the passengers were safely taken out from the plane on the taxiway. The incident occurred around 12.30pm when the flight AI 3426 was landing. Sources also said two of its tyres had been deflated by the time it reached the taxiway.
“Despite disruption, operations were not stopped and no diversions were recorded. The flight had to be towed away to safety after the passengers exited from the flight,” said a source.
A firefighting team, an ambulance and ground staff reached the spot before the airlines used mobile stairs to bring out the passengers.

31/08/18 Jasjeev Gandhiok/Times of India

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Mumbai airport name to get longer with ‘Maharaj’

Mumbai: The government has taken steps to add the word “Maharaj” to Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport.

The ministry of civil aviation has cleared the proposal to rename the airport Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport and sent it to the PMO for approval, said a ministry official. “The Prime Minister has given his approval and now a gazette notification will be issued, following which Maharaj will be added to the airport name,” the official said.

An official said a number of international agencies like the International Air Transport Association and airlines would need to be notified about the change after it happens.

31/08/18 Times of India

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Air Arabia to connect 13 Indian cities with Prague via Sharjah

Air Arabia will operate a direct flight from Sharjah in the UAE to Prague in the Czech Republic starting December 11.
Adel Al Ali, group chief executive officer of Air Arabia, said the airline is focusing on the continued expansion of its international routes. He said, “With the launch of the Sharjah to Prague route, we aim to offer our passengers a chance to discover the colourful and historic capital city. Our newest destination in Europe will be available direct from the UAE.”
Arzan Khambatta, head - Czech Tourist Authority, CzechTourism India, said, “The popularity of the Czech Republic as a tourist destination is exponentially increasing in India. Several Indian travellers want to explore this wonderful destination. Air Arabia will now connect Prague with 13 cities across India making the Czech Republic even more accessible to Indian travellers.”

Air Arabia will connect 13 Indian cities with Prague via Sharjah. The 13 cities are Chennai, Jaipur, Kochi, Nagpur, Coimbatore, Thiruvananthapuram, Goa, Kozhikode, Hyderabad, New Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad.
30/08/18 V Ayyappan/Times of India

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Air Deccan Operation Under UDAN From Shillong On A Halt

Shillong: The Air Deccan which was selected under the regional connectivity scheme, also known as UDAN (Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik), to operate from Shillong, has remained a non-starter due unknown reasons.

The Air Deccan had conducted a trial run with a lot of buzz  from the Umroi airport on April 25  this year when an 18-seater aircraft landed on the tarmac at Shillong Airport  marking the start of low-cost carrier Air Deccan’s operations to and from the facility at Umroi  but the services have been stopped since May  10  due to unknown reasons.

Under the Udan scheme, Air Deccan was selected to operate from Shillong and  the air fares are capped at Rs 2,500 per person for an hour’s flight to Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities in which the government will provide subsidy for flying with such low fares.
30/08/18 Shillong Times

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Indore airport gets nod to operate international flights

The civil aviation ministry has given its approval to operate international flights from the city’s Devi Ahilyabai Holkar Airport, a senior airport official said.

The first international flight is expected to start from December after completion of necessary formalities, according to Aryama Sanyal, director, Devi Ahilyabai Holkar Airport.

“We have got the green signal of the Union civil aviation ministry for the operation of international passenger flights from Indore,” Sanyal told reporters today.

She said that in view of the plan to start international operation from the airport, the civil aviation ministry has written to the home ministry to set up an immigration check post here.
29/08/18 Financial Express

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Guwahati-Singapore Drukair Flight To Take Off On Sept 1

Guwahati: As the inaugural Guwahati-Singapore Drikair flight is set to take off from Guwahati airport on September 1, Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said that diplomatic relations between India and Bhutan would receive a major boost with the launch of new international flight by Drukair – Royal Bhutan Airlines, connecting Guwahati with Singapore.

He said this while taking part at the ceremonially launch of this new international flight in a programme held at Hotel Vivanta by Taj in Guwahati on Thursday. The inaugural flight between Guwahati and Singapore will take off on 1st September from Lokapriya Gopinath Bardoloi International (LGBI) Airport here.

Sonowal termed the initiative historic and expressed his deep appreciation to the Royal Government of Bhutan and Drukair – Royal Bhutan Airlines, for the endeavour to connect Guwahati directly with Singapore. He said that the initiative would not only facilitate trade and people-to-people contact among Bhutan, Assam and Singapore but also contribute towards strengthening social, cultural and economic ties.
30/08/18 Shillong Times

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Balurghat airport to 'run' in 6 months

Calcutta: The state government will revamp Balurghat airport in South Dinajpur and is planning to make it functional in six months.

The plan was discussed at a meeting between the Airports Authority of India (AAI) and the transport department on Tuesday.

The government directed the PWD and the other departments concerned to prepare an estimate for the construction of the terminal building, perimeter wall, electrical connections and the Air Traffic Control tower.

"A survey showed there's considerable demand for air connectivity from Balurghat. We can start with 28-seater aircraft between Calcutta and Balurghat," a transport department official said. "We want to start operations early next year."
30/08/18 Kinsuk Basu/Telegraph

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New terminal building to flaunt GRIHA-4 tag

Pune: The new terminal building of the Pune international airport will be Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment-4 (GRIHA-4) compliant, senior officials of the Airports Authority of India (AAI) said.
The authorities claimed that the environmental clearance for the project was expected within a month.

A public hearing on the environmental impact assessment of the new terminal building was held on Wednesday. The Pune airport director Ajay Kumar told TOI that the AAI has undertaken an effort to ensure green measures in the existing facility too.

“The new terminal structure will incorporate various green building features. During the public hearing today, the team of officials did not show any serious environmental concern. Some of the concerns pertained to the safety of the building from flooding and real-time monitoring of environmental parameters. Pune is the only airport to have installed four air pollution controller machines on its premises and their number will increase by December,” said Kumar.
30/08/18 Joy Sengupta/Times of India

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HC quashes notices to demolish structures on airport periphery

Chandigarh: Nearly two years after notices were issued for demolishing structures within 100-meter radius of the airport periphery, the Punjab and Haryana High Court on Wednesday quashed the same. The notices were issued under the provisions of the Punjab New Capital (Periphery) Control Act, 1952.

The court, however, was of the opinion that the same were required to be issued under the Works of Defence Act. Allowing a bunch of petitions filed in the matter, Justice Surya Kant and Justice Sudip Ahluwalia also gave the Administration the liberty to initiate action under the provisions of the Works of Defence Act. In all, 264 structures were identified.

In one of the petitions, Raj Kumar and 49 other residents of Faida Nizampur village in Burail had claimed that notices dated April 5, 2016, were issued to the petitioners alleging that they had contravened the provisions of the Periphery Act by raising construction. It was provided that the petitioners are being afforded an opportunity to appear on 9.8.2016 and explain the position with regard to the violations committed in contravention of the Act.
29/08/18 Tribune

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MIAL inducts first of its kind advanced emergency passenger evacuation vehicle

Mumbai: GVK Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL), the company that administers the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA), has inducted first of its kind Advanced Passenger
Evacuation Vehicle for rescuing stranded personnel from inaccessible areas of aircraft.
30/08/18 UNI

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Rescheduling of flights causing hardship to air passengers

Kozhikode: The 15-day shutdown of Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL) due to flooding may have brought a windfall for the Calicut International Airport as several flights were rerouted to Kozhikode.
But the rescheduling of flights from the Kochi airport has led to overcrowding and is causing hardships to passengers flying out of the Calicut airport. One of the reasons cited is the overbooking of flights, especially those operating to Middle East destinations as schools are reopening after the summer vacation in the Gulf countries.
A senior Airports Authority of India official told The Hindu that the situation would be back to normal in a week. Airline companies have directed passengers to travel via Calicut airport until things are streamlined at the Kochi airport. Air India Express, which flies to various destinations in the country, are usually delayed. “Sometimes even a scheduled flight to Muscat in the evening was rescheduled to the next forenoon,” B. Ajay, a passenger who had a harrowing experience, said.
30/08/18 The Hindu

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Madhya Pradesh government takes up fight for more flights from Bhopal airport

Bhopal: The state government has decided to take up the issue of poor air connectivity at Raja Bhoj Airport with director general of civil aviation (DGCA). The state will pitch for slots to airlines to start operations from Bhopal to Pune and Bengaluru, and increase frequency of flights to Delhi and Mumbai.

Government officials said this at a meeting with IndiGo, Jet Airways, Air India and airport officials on Wednesday. This come in the wake of an online campaign by frequent fliers across the globe for more flights to and from Bhopal. The Bhopal chapter of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Airports Authority of India and state government organised a meeting with senior officials of major airlines, where it was agreed that flight connectivity from Bhopal is indeed poor and needs to be addressed. Poor air connectivity is hampering tourism and industries in MP, they said.
According to CII, the objective of the meeting was to push for connectivity to Hyderabad, Bangalore and Ahmedabad and increase frequency to Delhi and Mumbai. “It was noticed that Bhopal airport has no flight during the daytime and has ample scope for airlines to start operations to various places,” said CII MP chapter vice-chairman Animesh Jain.
30/08/18 Ramendra Singh/Times of India

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GoAir announces flights from Mumbai, Delhi to Maldives from Rs17,999

Just in time for the holidays, GoAir is making its first foray into international skies. The airline is launching India’s first direct flight to Phuket effective 11 October, from Mumbai and Delhi. There will be three direct flights between Mumbai and Phuket per week, starting at an all-inclusive fare of Rs18,999 for return tickets. Two direct flights will connect Delhi and Phuket at the same price.

The airline will also operate three direct flights per week between Mumbai and Male commencing on  14 October at an all-inclusive return fare starting from Rs17,999. Similarly, there will be two direct flights per week between Delhi and Male. With its international debut, GoAir will increase its operations by 28 flights to make a total of 1,680 flights per week.

Currently, the Delhi to Phuket flights will operate on Thursdays and Sundays, departing at 01:10 and arriving in Phuket at 07:25. The Mumbai to Phuket flight will take off on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday, departing at 01:25 and arriving at 07:25.
29/08/18 Andrea Pinto/Conde Nast Traveller

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Elderly foreign national allegedly thrashed by Delhi airport staffer

New Delhi: In a shocking incident in a high-security zone, a foreign national was allegedly thrashed by a Delhi airport employee at the 1D Terminal here on Wednesday afternoon.

DNA reported that the foreign national, who is in India to travel the country with a friend, was assaulted by an employee of  Air India Singapore Airport Terminal Services (AISATS) after a heated war of words between the two. It is reported that the passenger inquired why she had been charged a certain amount for her ticket but was not satisfied with the reply she received from the woman behind the Air India ticket counter at the terminal. The passenger then clicked a photo of the employee - accusing her of stealing her money, before making her way to the exit gate.

It is then that the employee is believed to have emerged from behind the ticket counter and began pulling the passenger's handbag before allegedly slapping, shoving and pushing her. Eyewitness accounts say that CISF personnel refused to intervene and it was only when fellow travellers raised an alarm that the victim could be pulled to safety. By then, however, she had suffered injuries and was bleeding.
30/08/18 Zee News

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Delhi: Woman held after throwing power bank in rage at airport

New Delhi: Delhi Police has arrested a 56-year-old woman for allegedly creating a ruckus at Indira Gandhi International Airport, after she was asked by screening staff of Delhi International Airport Limited to remove a power bank from her check-in luggage.

“We have arrested the woman, Malvika Tiwari, a resident of Defence Colony, after registering an FIR under IPC sections 336 (endangering life or personal safety of others) and 285 (negligent conduct with respect to fire or combustible matter). She was later released on bail,” DCP (Airport) Sanjay Bhatia said.

Investigation revealed she was sitting at Terminal 1 and was waiting to board a flight to Dharamshala when she was called back by the airlines. “She was asked to remove her power bank but she got agitated and threw the device at the wall. It burst on impact, leading to panic,” a senior officer said.
30/08/18 Indian Express

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India Ministry of Civil Aviation proposes 'reasonable cap' on aeronautical yield for new airports

India's Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) released (28-Aug-2018) the following additional details about its proposed transaction model for new airports:

New airport concession contracts to based on develop, build, finance, operate and transfer model;
New airport concession contract period extended to 40 years;
Concession fee of INR per passenger to replace share of gross revenue as the bid parameter for new airport concession contract tenders. Rather than awarding contracts to the bidder offering the highest revenue share, "The bidder quoting the highest Concession Fee will be declared the highest ranked bidder";
Moratorium on payment of concession fee for the first three years of operation of new airports;
Cost plus model of determining airport tariffs based on capital expenditure throughout the concession period to be replaced by pre determined tariff model based on "maximum blended aeronautical yield (MBAY) in terms of INR per passenger";
MBAY of INR400 (USD5.7) per passenger for all new airports proposed for FY2018/19;
Total aeronautical revenue p/a allowable to the concessionaire is MBAY multiplied by the number of airport passengers p/a.
29/08/18 CAPA

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AAI suggests raising ILS height by 3.5 foot

Surat: A team of officials from Airports Authority of India (AAI) visited Surat airport for inspection of damaged instrument landing system (ILS) during the recent heavy rain in the city.
The officials have suggested raising of the equipment hut by 3.5 foot to protect the ILS from floods in future.
TOI had highlighted in its report dated August 22 how the heavy rain had caused damage to the ILS system at the airport.
Official sources said the airport is located close to the Arabian Sea and the ILS equipment hut site happens to be in a low-lying area. The water level at the ILS structure was about one meter, which damaged UPS batteries due to a short circuit last month. The ILS system remained under water for more than three days. A combination of heavy rain coupled with high tide in the sea had flooded the airport area many times in the past too.
With Surat airport buzzing with 26 flight movements in a day, the absence of ILS facility is causing immense difficulties for aircraft pilots to safely land in adverse weather conditions.
29/08/18 Times of India

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Mangaluru: AAI to fund Rs 6.75 crore complete drainage scheme in Malavoor

Mangaluru: Airports Authority of India (AAI) has decided to fund the complete drainage scheme amounting Rs 6.75 crore in Malavoor village on the foothills of Mangaluru International Airport.

This project will benefit all the villagers from any future flood- type situation.

Presently there is no storm water drainage system in the Malavoor village. Only few natural nallahs which are used presently too are blocked due to construction works. Once the new drainage system comes in place, it will protect the life and properties of the villagers against any natural calamities.
28/08/18 daijiworld

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Air India passengers stranded overnight at Varanasi airport due to technical glitch

Varanasi: The air passengers to Sharjah remain stranded overnight at the terminal building of Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport, Babatpur on Monday night Owing to the technical snag in the engine of the aircraft of Varanasi-Sharjah flight (IX-183) of Air India. The passengers could be accommodated to different hotels in the city on Tuesday morning. The flight, which was to take off at 5pm on Monday, was rescheduled at 8pm on Tuesday.

According to reports, already delayed for six hours the aircraft carrying 184 passengers went to the runway to take off at 12.30am on Monday night. After detecting some snag in the engine the pilot contacted the air traffic control (ATC) and took the aircraft back to the apron. The passengers were asked to wait at the terminal building until the repairing of the engine.
As most of the shops at the terminal building were closed in late night, the passengers remained high and dry, and they created ruckus at the terminal building. The airline management had to face the ire of annoyed passengers while convincing them. They were shifted to different hotels in the morning.
28/08/18 Binay Singh/Times of India

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Airport comes under fire over fire safety

Mohali: A day after finding glaring shortcomings in the fire safety system at the Chandigarh international airport in Mohali, the local Municipal Corporation on Tuesday refused to renew the fire safety certificate of the airport building.

Confirming the development, Mohali MC Joint Commissioner Kanu Thind, who found serious lapses in the fire safety system during her inspection on Monday, said the airport was given a provisional no-objection certificate in this regard. The date of the certificate had expired after which the airport authorities applied for its renewal.
“We refused to renew the certificate on Tuesday and asked the airport authorities to remove all shortcomings first,” said Thind.
The Joint Commissioner said an explanation had been sought from the Mohali chief fire officer in this regard. “I have sought an explanation from the chief fire officer after finding glaring shortcomings in the fire safety system at the airport. I don’t know why and how these shortcomings were not noticed by our officer there during his inspection before issuing an NOC in this regard,” said Kanu Thind.
28/08/18 Akash Ghai/Tribune

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Flyers beware, you may have to do this at airports soon

New Delhi: If you are frequent flyers then get ready to spare more time for your security screening at airports. Now, flyers may even have to take out their wallets, mobile phones, chargers and any electronic item from handbags for separate screening at airports and perhaps more.

So far, only laptops and tablets were asked to be kept in trays for screening but now odd-sized pens will also be screened with care as in some cases knives were detected in them in the past weeks, said a Times of India report. Such incidents have prompted these new steps. A senior CISF official said that this is being done across the country for speedier security clearance at airports.
According to the report, the CISF has now gone "back to basics" practice where boards will be put up at pre-embarkation security check (PESC) points. These boards will remind flyers to remove anything not allowed in aircraft cabin that might have unwittingly remained in handbag like knives or scissors. Sometimes people with gun licences reportedly bring handbags that have bullets in them.
CISF personnel checking for these objects reportedly slow down the security process leading to long queues.
29/08/18 ZeeBiz

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First batch of haj pilgrims returns home

Gaya:  The first batch of 150 haj pilgrims from Bihar, 46 of them women, arrived at the Gaya international airport by a special Air India flight on Tuesday afternoon.
Scheduled for 2.15pm, the flight landed about 75 minutes late at 3.30pm. The pilgrims who returned hail from eight districts of the state, including Patna and Darbhanga. Sources said arrangements had been made to escort the pilgrims to the state capital in airconditioned buses under police escort.
The pilgrims were received at the airport by state minority welfare minister Khurshid Ahmad, State Haj Committee chief Mohd Iliyas and Gaya DM Abhishek Singh. All the 4,798 pilgrims from the state will come back in the next two weeks. The last batch of pilgrims will be reaching Gaya on September 11.
28/08/18 Times of India

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Thiruvananthapuram airport comes out in flying colours

Thiruvananthapuram: The Thiruvananthapuram international airport is in the limelight for handling 726 additional rescheduled domestic and international flights, 360 movements of rescue-and-relief flights and helicopters, and 75,000 flyers since August 15 when the flooded the Cochin international airport was closed for air traffic.

The airport authorities also responded positively to a request on August 18 to make available X-ray baggage scanners, other security gadgets, and counters for commencing flights using ATR from Kochi Naval air base.

The stakeholders of the airport, managed by the Airports Authority of India, rose to the occasion and handled the additional flights with ease even as it catered to its 120 scheduled arrivals and departures daily. The lowest of 16 rescheduled flights were handled on August 15 and the highest of 79 on August 27.
Of the 360 movements of rescue-and-relief flights, 176 were flights of defence forces and 184 helicopter movements that played a major role in rescuing the marooned people and taking relief materials to the flood-hit.
29/08/18 The Hindu

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Why passengers may have to take out mobiles, chargers and wallets at airport security check

Planning to fly out of the city? Soon air passengers may have to take out their mobile phones, chargers, wallets and any other electronic items from their handbags for screening at airports. So far, only laptops and tablets were required to be taken out from the bags and kept in trays for screening. According to a TOI report, following some cases of detection of knives in the past few days, now odd-sized pens are also being screened with enhanced care. In the past few weeks, passengers flying out of Delhi have been asked to take these steps. A senior CISF officer said that this is being carried out across the country for speedier security clearance at airports.

According to the CISF officer, while scanning the handbags, the screen displays a lot of clutter in bags. Also, screeners request removal of other electronic items and chargers, in case of a jumbled picture. The officer also said that pens are checked for knives if they are heavier or if they look different. The bags are checked manually in cases of doubts, due to which the processing time slows down. Therefore, taking out these items from bags will help speed up handbag screening, the officer added.

The report stated that now, the CISF has taken up “back to basics” practice where at pre-embarkation security check (PESC) points, boards will be put up, reminding passengers to remove anything that is prohibited in aircraft cabin that might have remained in handbags by mistake, such as knives or scissors. Passengers who possess gun licences often bring handbags that have bullets in them. The CISF staff checking these items and removing them from handbags slows the entire process, and this often leads to long queues.
29/08/18 Devanjana Nag/Financial Express

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Fliers harassed at Sahnewal airport

Ludhiana: Passengers were harassed as the flight at Sahnewal had to be cancelled as it arrived late on Monday and couldn’t take off before sunset.
The flight reached at 6:31 pm while the sunset time was 6:57 pm. The passengers could not board the plan before sunset and the flight was cancelled at the last minute. Many passengers had connected flights to other places.
On Tuesday also, the flight reached around 5 pm against its scheduled time of 3:55 pm. It departed at 5:25 pm.
Director of Sahnewal Airport AN Sharma said the flight got delayed on Tuesday. “It is not a routine. Rarely do flights get delayed. We have to see the safety of passengers first and only then we let the flight take off,” he said.
28/08/18 Tribune

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AAI likely to overhaul Goa airport’s parking policy

Panaji: Airports Authority of India (AAI) has decided to review the parking plan at Goa International Airport, Dabolim and is even exploring the possibility of removing the five minute limit for private vehicles, entering the airport area.
AAI has appointed a consultant to calculate the revenue generated for levying a fee on vehicles spending more than five minutes free time at the terminal arrival and departure ramp. “The policy is being reviewed and a new parking policy is under consideration,” airport director Bhupesh C H Negi said. The airport director said that AAI had received a lot of criticism about the five-minute limit on private vehicles.

“One of the reasons for vehicles exceeding the time is haphazard parking by taxis and other vehicles. Once the haphazard parking in the exit lane has been streamlined, the situation will be better,” Negi said.

AAI has asked the consultant to study the current parking situation, the revenue collected for seven days and then submit a report. AAI wants to find out the total monthly revenue generated through the existing car parking management service along with a break-up of the revenue from commercial vehicles and private vehicles separately.
29/08/18 Times of India

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Vadodara to get flights to Jaipur, Indore next month

Vadodara: Barodians can look forward to better air connectivity from the new integrated terminal building at Vadodara airport. Fliers will get two more domestic flights, to Jaipur and Indore, from next month.
While IndiGo had announced a direct flight to Hyderabad from September 15, Jet Airways is starting flights to Jaipur and Indore from September 2.
Vadodara MP Ranjan Bhatt and the Federation of Gujarat Industries (FGI) which had made representations to the Centre seeking better air connectivity from Vadodara, welcomed the decision.
According to the FGI, the Vadodara-Indore-Vadodara and Vadodara-Jaipur-Vadodara flights will operate four days a week — Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays.
29/08/18 Times of India

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First flight lands at Kochi airport as it reopens after a fortnight

The Cochin International airport, which had been rendered non-functional since August 14 due to flooding and torrential rains in Kerala, reopened around 2 pm on Wednesday. Indigo flight 667 from Ahmadabad to Kochi, was the first flight in two weeks to land at the CIAL. A number of 33 flights are scheduled to arrive and 30 others are scheduled to depart from the airport today. The number includes both domestic and international flights.

Due to flooding of key areas of the aerodrome such as runway, taxiway, parking bays and apron, the Kochi airport has lost almost 2,600 meters of the perimeter wall. The airport suffered an estimated loss of over Rs 220 crore due to floods. The airport was scheduled to commence operations on August 26, but extended the date by three days after most stakeholders, including airlines and ground handling agencies, expressed concern over mobilising manpower by that date.

Congress president Rahul Gandhi is on a two-day tour of flood-affected areas in Kerala. On Tuesday, he visited flood relief camps in Chengannur, Chalakudy and Paravur, some of the worst affected areas. Addressing nearly 200 people at the St Francis Assissi school in Athani, Rahul said, “I want all of you to know that you are not alone, we are with you. We are not in government either in Delhi or in Kerala. We cannot do very big things, but we are going to do whatever we can. In its own limited way, the Congress is collecting funds to help you.” He is scheduled to visit several places including Kochi today.
29/08/18 New Indian Express

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Main runway closure: Airlines take steps to tide over probable delays

Chennai: Airlines have tweaked boarding timings and pilots have started to carry more fuel to tide over probable delays after Airports Authority of India (AAI) has started to close the main runway daily for five hours from 12.30pm for taxiway work. The runway will be closed daily for six months.
Though the airport has been able to handle domestic flights on secondary runway without considerable delays and disruptions since Sunday, the flight punctuality may take a hit till the runway closure is on.

Owing to change in runway, airlines' officials are taking steps to prevent things from affecting their schedule. They have started to board passenges early, sometimes before check-in counter closes 45 minutes before departure. This is to ensure that flight can be pushed back early to make up for the delay in taxiing to reach the take-off point of the second runway.

"If the departure is from GST road-end of the second runway, planes can reach take-off point quickly. But if the take-off point is on Manapakkam-end of the runway, then it's accessible only after a 10 to 15-minute taxiing," said an official.
29/08/18 Times of India

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More aircraft parking bays on cards

Thiruvananthapuram: The Airports Authority of India (AAI) plans to construct four more aircraft parking bays at the international terminal (T-II) of the Thiruvananthapuram international airport to resolve the parking woes of operating airlines.

The work will be taken up at ₹30 crore.

The capacity enhancement is part of AAI’s ₹20,000-crore infrastructure upgrade plan to add 273 parking bays at 24 airports managed by it across the country.

With their commissioning, the number of parking bays in the international terminal here will go up to 13. The domestic terminal (T-I) on Shanghumughom side has 11 parking bays.
29/08/18 S Anil Radhakrishnan/The Hindu

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Odisha leaders in city demand Surat-Bhubaneswar flight

Surat: Leaders of Odisha community in the Diamond City have made a strong demand with Union petroleum minister Dharmendra Pradhan and Airports Authority of India (AAI) chairman for introducing a direct flight between Bhubaneswar and Surat.
Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik had recently written to Union civil aviation minister Suresh Prabhu and railway minister Piyush Goyal requesting them to convince private airline companies to provide direct air connectivity between Bhubaneswar and Surat and also introduce two daily trains between Behrampur and Surat.


Odisha Samaj leader Bhagirath Bahera told TOI, “Surat has a large number of migrant Odisha population and the only mode of transport for them is railways. We have requested AirAsia and other airlines to start flight services to Odisha.”

Bahera said Odisha Samaj is organizing a two-day long ‘Odisha Parva’ in the city which will be inaugurated by Dharmendra Pradhan on September 2.
29/08/18 Times of India

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Indore: Airport likely to get 20 acre for Rs 26 crore sans lease rent, says Sumitra Mahajan

Indore: Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan has said that annual lease rent issue for 20 acre to be offered to Devi Ahilya Bai Holkar Airport is being resolved. The airport will now have to pay Rs 26 crore as land price. Chairing the maiden meeting of newly-constituted Airport Advisory Committee at the airport on Tuesday, Mahajan said that she has spoken to people concerned in Bhopal for deletion of clause regarding Rs 1.80 crore annual lease rent for 20 acre that will be transferred by the revenue department.

“Now, the airport administration will only have to pay land’s price,” she told other members of the committee, including Dilip Dev, Sumit Suri, Krishna Upadhyay, aviation expert Nagesh Namjoshi and airport director Aryama Sanyal.
Earlier, the state government had sought Rs 26 crore for the 20 acre land. It also wanted the airport to pay Rs 1.8 crore every year as lease rent.  Chairman of Airport Authority of India (AAI) Guruprashad Mohpatra had shot off a letter to Principal Secretary to the CM seeking exemption from lease rent.
29/08/18 Free Press Journal

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Rain water gushes through Guwahati airport roof, video goes viral

Visuals of water dripping through the roof of Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport in Guwahati has gone viral on social media. Heavy rains throughout Monday evening had lead to water retention on the airport's roof.

The passenger lounge area of the airport was flooded with water but no flight operations were affected, according to an airport official.

Torrential downpour from 8.45 pm to 10 pm caused water to enter through the newly expanded canopy of the passenger lounge, P K Tailong, the manager of the airport said.

"We had recently expanded the canopy and it was an initial teething problem. I was present there and it was immediately attended to," Tailong said.
Passengers claimed they were drenched by the rain water and many of them had to move away with their luggage.
28/08/18 India Today

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Bomb hoax leads to delay in two AirAsia flights from Bengaluru

Pune: An AirAsia flight to Pune from Bengaluru was delayed by around two hours on Monday because of a bomb hoax.
The flight (I5 1426), scheduled to take off from Bengaluru at 1.05pm, departed only at 3.32pm. An AirAsia official said another flight of theirs from Bengaluru to Hyderabad (I5 1516) was also affected because of a bomb hoax, triggering commotion among the airline staffers and the airport authorities in Bengaluru.

Prashant Pansare, an entrepreneur travelling on the flight to Pune on Monday wrote on his Twitter handle, “The flight is delayed with all passengers stranded without any clear clues on what is happening. Is there a security glitch or some technical glitch? We don’t know yet.”

After a while, he tweeted again, “Absolute chaos at the airport. Staff is now telling security alert with no clear information and help to stranded passengers.”

29/08/18 Joy Sengupta/Times of India

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Towering inferno in the flight path

Dabolim: In a shocking and dangerous precedent, Chicalim Village Panchayat has granted occupancy certificate to a seven-storeyed high rise building with 66 studio and 24 1-BHK flats at Alto Dabolim, just metres away from the flight path of aircraft landing at Dabolim Airport from the north-eastern side. The building has already been occupied by quite a few residents despite it being so close to the Aircraft Flight Path. The building reportedly does not have the mandatory permissions nor the infrastructure for fire safety.
A letter dated August 20, 2018 to Mormugao Planning and Development Authority (MPDA), Directorate of Fire & Emergency Services pointed out that MPDA had granted the project, Completion and Occupancy Certificate last year on December 20, 2017. The Chicalim Panchayat granted the project the go ahead on February 6, 2018 in gross violation of MPDA’s own condition. The MPDA had reportedly mentioned that the Development Permission that Completion Certificate will be given only after the applicant receives the Final NOC from Fire Services. The Fire Services Department has reportedly notified the builder for gross negligence obtaining Completion and Occupancy certificate without submitting Final NOC from Fire Services as required under Goa Land Development and Building Construction Regulations 2010. The builder, who obtained these certificates violating the statute, is the Chicalim Dy Sarpanch.
28/08/18 Goa.com

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Airstrip to come up in Kuppam soon

Tirupati: Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu’s Assembly constituency Kuppam will soon have an airstrip instead of an airport as was planned earlier.
It was the brainchild of Naidu to have a green field airport in the remote area of the district Kuppam so that people from surrounding places can reach Tirupati international airport easily and send their exports to any other places.

But ministries concerned, Defence and Civil Aviation, have turned down the proposal to issue no objection certificate (NOC) and other approvals citing Bengaluru International Airport, which is in 150 km range as the major reason.

Upset with the Centre’s attitude, the State government has decided to go with building an airstrip in place of greenfield airport with an estimated cost of Rs 100 crore. The government believes that this move will induce exports from the region.
27/08/18 Hans India

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Indore: Airport moves closer to starting international flights

Indore: Taking a step towards starting international flights, Devi Ahilyabai Holkar Airport management is making efforts to set up immigration and customs counters within two months. The international flights will start from city by year end.

City airport director Aryama Sanyal told mediapersons on Monday that ministry of civil aviation has granted approval to set up immigration and customs counters here. A proposal to this effect was mooted by her to Airport Authority of India, which was then forwarded to civil aviation ministry.

The ministry has asked union home and finance ministry to issue notification about setting up of immigration and custom counters in security hold area of airport’s new terminal building. Sanyal said that notification by both the ministries will follow direction to customs commissioner, Indore, and Intelligence Bureau (IB) to open counters here.
28/08/18 Free Press Journal

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Chennai airport main runway won’t attend flights for six hours a day till October

Chennai: The officials of the Chennai airport briefed that the main runway of the airport will not attend flights for a time bracket of six hours daily in order to speed up the ongoing infrastructure work at the Chennai airport. The official also informed that the situation at the airport will be continued till the month of October.

The closure of the main runway of the airport, for the time being, won’t affect the flight services at the airport as the secondary runway is equipped in order to handle the flight traffic.

As per the reports, the main runway of the Chennai airport would not attend the flight traffic from 12 pm to 6 pm till October and the following months it will be closed from 10 am to 6 pm. The construction work on the airport has been initiated from Sunday and will include construction of new taxiways and strengthening of an existing taxiway which after completion will make aircraft to take off at a higher speed than the usual.
27/08/18 Shivangi Agrawal/Indian Tribune

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Shamshabad airport now gives 40% GSDP to Telangana, says CM

Vijayawada: Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu said the greenfield airport at Shamshabad, mooted during his rule in united AP, is now giving 40% GSDP to Telangana. Naidu on Monday rang the bell at Sir Dinshaw Petit international convention hall of Bombay Stock Exchange in Mumbai to mark the listing of Amaravati bonds.

Interacting with investors during the occasion, he relied on the work he had done for Hyderabad, and said he will do the same to develop Amaravati as one in the best five capital cities in the country.

Naidu said that when he had mooted a greenfield international airport, there was no global connectivity, and that he had convinced the then Prime Minister about the key project, as a result of which the ‘open sky’ policy was formulated.
28/08/18 Times of India

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Alternative route to Chandigarh airport to cost Rs 1,217 crore: DMRC study

Chandigarh: The alternative route to Chandigarh International Airport in Mohali that has been proposed to cut down the distance for people commuting from Chandigarh and Panchkula will cost a whopping Rs 1,217 crore, revealed the techno-economic feasibility study conducted by Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC).

The 115-page report, a copy of which is with Chandigarh Newsline, stated that the route would be a combination of clover leaves, underground tunnel and main road lanes. DMRC was entrusted with conducting a techno-economic feasibility of an alternative route by the Airports Authority of India (AAI) that had been pending since long.

The complete plan, including how much land is to be acquired, its drawings, planning and implementation have all been submitted by DMRC to AAI. In the cost estimate, the road Link from Chandigarh (NH-21 End) to Chandigarh airport will cost Rs 1,097.99 crore and the clover leaves and tunnel together would cost around Rs 118.63 crore thereby bringing the total cost to Rs 1,216.62 crore.
28/08/18 Hina Rohtaki/Indian Express

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Though mostly empty, govt seeks to expand Mihan

Nagpur: Launched 16 years ago, 92% of land in Multi-modal International Hub Airport at Nagpur (Mihan)-Special Economic Zone (SEZ) stands allotted. Nodal agency Maharashtra Airport Development Company (MADC) is getting demand for more land, especially in non-SEZ area so Mihan is likely to witness an expansion soon.
Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and Union minister Nitin Gadkari on Sunday directed the MADC officials and district collector to identify more land for Mihan expansion. Sources in these offices told TOI, expansion was possible only towards Sumthana situated behind Isasani. “There is sprawling land in mouza Sumthana. Also, Mihan-SEZ will get access from Outer Ring Road and proposed Nagpur-Mumbai Samdruddhi Corridor if it is expanded towards Sumthana. Major challenge will be acquisition of land and compensation. Industries will come only if land cost is low,” sources said.
MADC figures show only 331 of around 4,000 hectares in Mihan-SEZ has remained unallotted. Around 1,500 hectares has been transferred for new airport. Around 400 hectares is kept for Indian Air Force (IAF).
28/08/18 Anjaya Anparthi/Times of India

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First special Hajj flight landed at Srinagar airport

Srinagar: The first special flight, carrying Hajj pilgrims from Jammu and Kashmir, landed at Srinagar International Airport on Tuesday.
Senior civil and police officials received the pilgrims at the airport.
The authorities had issued special passes to relatives of pilgrims to receive them at the airport.
About 9,800 pilgrims had performed the Hajj pilgrimage from Jammu and Kashmir this year.
28/08/18 UNI

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Kerala floods: Kochi airport to resume operations tomorrow

Flight operations from the Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL) airport here, which suffered an estimated loss of over Rs 220 crore due to floods, will resume on August 29.
The airport, among the busiest in the country, had been rendered non-functional since August 14 due to flooding and torrential rains.
“CIAL is all set to commence full-scale operations (both international and domestic) at 2 PM on August 29,” a CIAL spokesperson said here in a statement.
Civil aircraft services which were being operated from the Naval airport in Kochi since August 20 would be suspended from noon that day, he said.
The airlines would follow the current schedule for operations, he said, adding they had been intimated of the airport’s readiness to commence operations to ensure smooth functioning of services as per schedule.
28/08/18 PTI/Indian Express

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Vinesh Phogat gets engaged at airport on return after clinching Gold at Asian Games

New Delhi:  On her return after winning the historic Gold medal at the 18th Asian Games in Jakarta, a birthday gift was waiting for wrestler Vinesh Phogat at the Delhi airport. The wrestler returned on Saturday which was also her 24th birthday.
And the day was indeed made special for her.
Soon after Vinesh touched down in Delhi, her long-term boyfriend and former national-level wrestler Somveer Rathi gifted her an engagement ring. The duo exchanged engagement rings at the airport in the presence of Vinesh's uncle Mahavir Phogat and Somveer's mother.
Since it was her birthday, Somveer wanted to get engaged on Saturday itself. But as she reached late in the night, he rushed to the airport and exchanged rings there itself.
The two have known each other for the last seven years. She had earlier posted a picture of herself with Somveer on a social networking site with a caption: "The best decision I ever made! Glad you pinned me for life."
28/08/18 Zee News

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GVK could sell a significant minority stake in Mumbai airport; Bidvest Group looks to exit investment

The GVK Group is reportedly in discussions to sell a significant minority stake in Mumbai International Airport Pvt. Ltd (MIAL). Parallelly, South Africa’s Bidvest Group, which holds a roughly 13.5 percent stake in MIAL, is reportedly looking to exit its investment.

GVK has initiated discussions with airport operators and with sovereign wealth funds – the firm is negotiating with Singapore’s Changi Airport, German airport operator AviAlliance, India’s sovereign wealth fund National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), reported the Mint.

Bidders are expected to table non-binding offers by 10 September. Citigroup is managing the transaction, the Mint report said.
On the other hand, private equity firms Blackstone, TPG, Brookfield, the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), the Changi Airport Group and Dubai Airports are in the fray to acquire Bidvest's stake in MIAL. NM Rothschild is running the mandate, reported The Economic Times (ET).
27/08/18 First Post

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Rain water floods passenger lounge of Guwahati airport

Guwahati: Rain water gushed through the ceiling inside the passenger lounge area of Guwahati airport following heavy showers yesterday but no flight operations were affected, an airport official said today.
Torrential downpour from 8.45 pm to 10 pm caused water to enter through the newly expanded canopy of the passenger lounge, P K Tailong, the manager of the Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport, told PTI.
“We had recently expanded the canopy and it was an initial teething problem. I was present there and it was immediately attended to,” Tailong said.
28/08/18 PTI/India.com

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Bomb hoax call again at Bengaluru airport

Bengaluru: Security was tightened in and around Kempegowda International Airport on Monday following a call made by a man claiming that an IED had been planted in an Air India flight.
The officials carried out standard operating procedure and sanitised the entire area with the anti-sabotage squad. The KIA police later confirmed that it was a hoax call.
28/08/18 The Hindu

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Rs 10k cr convention centre planned at MIHAN

Nagpur: Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and union minister Nitin Gadkari have proposed to develop a world class Nagpur International Convention and Exhibition Centre (NICE) with mono rail connectivity on 108 acres at Mihan. The two ministers also directed the Maharashtra Airport Development Company (MADC) to plan expansion of MIHAN by getting additional land.
Fadnavis and Gadkari held a meeting on Sunday at Ramgiri to review a slew of developmental projects proposed in the city. Centre Point Group of Companies in association with US-based Tricon Infrastructures and Prognosis made a presentation about NICE at an estimated cost of over Rs 10,000 crore. Jasbir Singh, Angad Arora, architect Vilas Kale, Arjun Arora, Faisun Hasanji, and Mustafa Hasanji gave the presentation.
It has been proposed with 1.85 lakh sq ft built-up area with a stadium of 25,000-40,000 capacity, convention centre with 10,000 seating capacity, multipurpose halls, food plazas, five-star hotel, commercial plaza, open space for expos, iconic tower with revolving restaurant etc. A mono rail will connect it with new airport and other destinations in Mihan and metro rail stations of the area.
MADC sources told TOI, Gadkari also suggested 46 acres for exclusively for restaurants and hotels in Mihan.
27/08/18 Anjaya Anparthi/Times of India

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Cabinet approval sought to upgrade Palaly airport

Three ministries have sought Cabinet approval to upgrade Palaly airport to a regional airport with flights operating to and from South India, the Sunday Times reports.
A paper submitted by the ministries of Transport and Civil Avaition, Policy Planning and Economic Development and Tourism seeks Rs 1.2 billion for the development plan.
“The initial plan will be to convert Palaly into a regional airport and thereafter to an international airport with flights to other countries,” Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva was quoted by the paper as saying.
The airport, which is currently within a militarised high security zone on military-occupied land, currently functions as a military airport.
Jaffna's District Additional Secretary, S Muralitharan told the Sunday Times that a feasibility study had been carried out. Of the 1000 acres of land on which the airport is situated, 750 acres would be used to develop the new airport, whilst 250 acres would be released to civilians.
27/08/18 Tamil Guardian

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Plan to use airport for flight training

Kalaburagi: Social Welfare Minister Priyank Kharge has said that the process of giving the Kalaburagi Airport for flight training purposes was under process. Addressing a press conference here on Sunday, he told presspersons here on Sunday that two flight pilot training academies, the Asia-Pacific Flight Training Academy (APFT) and the Avicon Aero, had approached the government seeking the airport for training purposes.

“It is a good thing if the airport is in use. If the flight training activities are on, the Civil Aviation Ministry will be satisfied with the airport’s functionality and the process of commencing commercial operations would be hastened,” he said. Considering the size of the airport premises, the Minister said that aviation skill development centres could also be opened at the airport.

Speaking to The Hindu at the airport, the Minister said that using the airport for flight training purposes will help train quality pilots. “Airports in metros are too busy to give time to training purposes. Their priority is offering the space to international commercial flights followed by domestic commercial flights. In crowded metro airports, flight training institutes get very little time to train their young pilots,” he said.
27/08/18 The Hindu

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10 years on, Kalaburagi dreams take flight

Kalaburagi: Exactly a decade after the commencement of the construction of Kalaburagi Airport, the first airplanes landed on its runway on Sunday.

Two lightweight four-seater trainer airplanes belonging to Asia-Pacific Flight Training Academy (APFT) landed on the runway at 10.51 a.m. and 11.18 a.m. respectively.

Captain Jahnavi, Captain Sachin Shaha and Chief Operating Officer of APFT Hemanth D.P. alighted from the first plane and Captain Abhijit and Captain Arun from the second one. Both the planes took off from the Rajiv Gandhi Hyderabad International Airport for the purpose of the trial-landing exercise at Kalaburagi Airport.

As they landed, Congress leader M. Mallikarjun Kharge, his son Priyank Kharge, leaders, Regional Commissioner Subodh Yadav, Deputy Commissioner R. Venkatesh Kumar, Chief Executive Officer of Zilla Panchayat Hephsiba Rani Korlapati, Superintendent of Police N. Shashikumar and the public welcomed them with applause.
Speaking to presspersons, Mr. Kharge asked the Union government to include the airport under the UDAN scheme.
27/08/18 The Hindu

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Trial landing of Kalaburagi Airport held successfully

Kalaburagi: Trial landing on the newly built runway of Kalaburagi Airport successfully completed on August 26. Aircraft Diamond DA40 and Diamond DA42 took off from Telangana's Hyderabad and landed at Karnataka's Kalaburagi airport.

Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Priyank Kharge were present at Kalburagi Airport. "We have done the trial landing to show to the people and government of India.

Airport and runway are ready for takeoff and landing. We have fulfilled all the conditions of government and Air India.
27/08/18 Business Standard

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No takers for Mamata Banerjee’s air service plan from Cooch Behar airport

Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s pet project to begin flight services from Cooch Behar airport has run into rough weather as the chosen airlines carrier is still undecided about when to start flight operations from the airport fearing dearth of passengers.
All the required facilities, including check-in and checkout counters, space for ticket counter, security checking, runways and apron, are ready for the last eight months, but no airlines company has shown encouraging signs for introducing flight operation.
Deccan Charter, a Bangalore-based low cost Airline of Air Deccan, was scheduled to operate small aircraft from August, 2017 under the regional connectivity scheme UDAN. The airline had planned to use ~ 20-seater Beech aircraft from Kolkata airport to Cooch Behar, Andal, Burnpur, and Jamshedpur.
“We still did not get any confirmation when the Deccan Charter would begin flight services from Cooch Behar aircraft,” a senior state transport department official said.
TrueJet, another Hyderabad-based airline, has agreed to conduct a feasibility study for operating small aircraft from Cooch Behar airport to Guwahati airport. Senior officials of TrueJet will visit Cooch Behar airport in October and carry out feasibility study, a senior state government official said.
26/08/18 Aparajit Chakraborty/Statesman

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Private equity firms, airport operators vying for 13.5% in MIAL

Private equity firms and airport operators have joined the race to acquire a 13.5% stake in Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL) from Bidvest Service, a leading South Africa-based services, trading and distribution group, said two people familiar with the development.

The deal size is pegged at $300-350 million (Rs 2,100-2,500 crore), valuing MIAL at Rs 15,000-18,000 crore. Bidvest had sold a 13.5% stake to Indian promoter GVK for $231million in October 2011. That was equivalent to Rs 1,134 crore at the time at the prevailing exchange rate of Rs 49 per dollar.

PE firms Blackstone, TPG, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and Brookfield along with operators Changi Airport Group and Dubai Airports are among the contenders, said one of the persons cited above. Global investment bank NM Rothschild is running the mandate. Rothschild (India) declined comment. The PE firms did not respond to queries. Airport operators could not be reached.
GVK is also trying to raise funds by selling a large minority stake of up to 49% in the airport holding company and has mandated Citi for the transaction. Approaches are said to have been made to AMP Capital, Qatar Investment Authority and Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd. GVK Airports Holdings owns 50.5% of MIAL, the consortium that runs airport terminals in the city and has a contract to build and manage the upcoming Rs 16,000 crore airport in Navi Mumbai.
27/08/18 Economic Times

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Jewar Airport: Why some farmers are resisting land acquisition

Noida: An unfulfilled promise, inadequate compensation and a fear of losing their identity are key reasons why some farmers in Jewar are resisting the Uttar Pradesh government’s bid to acquire their land for a proposed international airport. The farmers are also peeved about the categorisation of their region as “urban”. This classification makes them eligible for a compensation of two times the circle rate, instead of four times which is applicable on agricultural land under the Land Acquisition Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013.

Several farmers in five villages — Rohi, Parohi, Dayanatpur, Kishorpur and Ranhera — are ready for the acquisition as per the administration’s offer of Rs 2,300-Rs 2,500 per sq metre, while some others are demanding Rs 3,600 per sq metre, four times the circle rate. An international airport has been proposed in Jewar in Gautam Buddh Nagar for which around 5,000 hectare of land is to be acquired. The reported cost of the airport, scheduled to begin operations by 2022-23, would be Rs 15,000-20,000 crore.
The government, in the first phase, wants to acquire over 1,300 hectare from the five villages, affecting 2,250 families.
Murlidhar Sharma, 69, from Ranhera village claimed he is yet to receive a plot as was assured by the administration in addition to the monetary compensation for his land that was acquired for the Yamuna Expressway. I have seen all governments. Now what should I say… I had land along what now is the Yamuna Expressway. I was promised a plot seven per cent the size of my acquired land — which I have not got till date,” he claimed.
26/08/18 PTI/Indian Express

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AAI finally gives up plan to extend Juhu runway into sea

The Airports Authority of India (AAI), which owns the Juhu airport, has given up its long-standing plan to extend the runway into the sea. A recent reply given by the AAI to environmentalist Zoru Bathena confirms this.
Until recently, the AAI was talking of extending the runway into the sea – on stilts. Speaking to Mumbai Mirror, Zoru Bathena said, “I had filed an RTI (Right to Information) application with the western region of AAI and they didn’t give me conclusive answers. Finally, I approached the planning department of the AAI, which told me that there are no plans for extension of the runway into the sea.’’
Keshav Sharma, regional executive director of AAI, said that the planning department was the final authority on such matters. An aviation expert and former AAI officer said that the issue of extending the runway into the sea has been discussed for the past many years.
The AAI had appointed consultants and experts for the purpose. “If the plan of extending the runway into the sea was to move forward, the level of Juhu airport would have to be increased by three metres. The raising of the runway level will flood the entire JVPD, SV Road area near the airport.
27/08/18 Yogesh Naik/Mumbai Mirror

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Main runway of Chennai airport to be closed for six hours daily till october

The main runway of Chennai airport will be closed for six hours daily till October due to infrastructure works being carried out in the airport.

According to a report in The Hindu, airport officials said that this closure will, however, not affect flight services to and from the airport since the secondary runway is equipped to handle the traffic.

The main runway will be closed from 12 pm to 6 pm till October and then from November, it will be closed from 10 am to 6 pm.

Developmental works have begun in the airport from Sunday including construction of new taxiways and strengthening of an existing taxiway which would help aircrafts exit at a higher speed than the usual.
As per airport officials, these works will help reduce airport congestion by reducing the time aircrafts spend on the runway. These will also help reduce delay in flights.
27/08/18 News Minute

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Process on to get 39 acres for airport runway strip expansion project

Mangaluru: The process of getting 39 acres for the Airports Authority of India (AAI) for developing its airport in Mangaluru is on, according to Sasikanth Senthil S., Deputy Commissioner, Dakshina Kannada.

The AAI had sought 33 acres from the State government for widening the basic strip of the runway. The runway strip is meant for ensuring safety of an aircraft in case of overrunning, undershooting and veering-off the runway during landing or take off.

Speaking after inaugurating a seminar on “Introduction to air services and air cargo” organised by the Kanara Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) here on Saturday, Mr. Senthil said that land owners were demanding outright purchase of their land at market rate. It included some small portions of their land which, otherwise, would be of no use to them. Hence, the district administration has proposed the government to get 39 acres, including six more acres than that sought by the AAI. The process is not yet completed.

The Deputy Commissioner said that Mangaluru International Airport is equipped to operate efficiently for the next five decades. It would be developed further and there is no proposal to have another airport in the region now.
27/08/18 The Hindu

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Part of parallel taxi track in Goa may soon be ready for aircraft

Dabolim:  Flight delays could soon be a thing of the past with a portion of the 3.7km parallel taxi track at the Goa International Airport likely to become operational by October.
Dilip Buildcon Limited has completed work on 40% of the parallel taxi track and the Airports Authority of India (AAI) plans to utilise the completed segment from October itself.

Construction of the remaining portion of the taxi track and three additional parking bays will continue simultaneously, said airport director Bhupesh Negi. “By September-end, we will connect the parallel taxiway to the civil runway. That is the plan,” Negi said.

According to the contract, a full-length parallel taxi track suitable for a Boeing 747 type of aircraft is being constructed along the northern side of runway. The track will be 3.7-km long with a continuous shoulder of 10.5m.
27/08/18 Newton Sequeira/Times of India

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No bidder for recarpeting of Darbhanga airport runway

Patna:  Even as neighbouring Jharkhand got Bokaro airport functional on Saturday under the Udan scheme of Union civil aviation ministry, Bihar will have to wait a little longer for getting Darbhanga airstrip operational under the same scheme.

Sources in the civil aviation ministry said the project hit a roadblock owing to non-availability of bidders for re-carpeting of the runway at Darbhanga. Consequently, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) officials said flights operation from Darbhanga, which was to commence from January next year, will be delayed.

Earlier in January this year, SpiceJet was given a letter of award to operate flights from Darbhanga to Delhi, Bengaluru and Mumbai. Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik (UDAN) seeks to connect unserved and under-served airports with fares capped at Rs2,500 for one-hour flights.
27/08/18 Piyush Tripathi/Times of India

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Airport gets 600 new trolleys to help manage Puja footfall

Kolkata: To cope up with the passenger influx during the upcoming festive season, a new set of 600 trolleys arrived at Kolkata airport on Saturday. Airport officials said the consignment was part of a 4,000-trolley supply deal with Mumbai-based Delite Systems Engineering Pvt Ltd, which has so far delivered 3,100 new trolleys — including the batch delivered on Saturday.
“The rest of the consignment is expected to reach the airport by the end of this year. The new trolleys will help us manage the increase in passenger count because of the Pujas and other festivities,” said an airport official.
The airport still has around 700 functional old trolleys. The new trolleys are lighter and more manoeuvrable because of the aircraft nosewheel-like design and look better than the older ones. However, passengers complained that the new trolleys were unstable and airport officials claimed that over 100 new trolleys have already been grounded because of disfigured wheels.
27/08/18 Tamaghna Banerjee/Times of India

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Safety clearance for 3 aerobridges awaited

Jammu: Passengers travelling from the Jammu airport will soon experience the comfort of aerobridges. Three aerobridges are set to be operational soon after the safety clearance.
The Jammu airport is among the few airports of the country which did not have aerobridges. The aerobridges are part of the airport upgrade undertaken by the Airports Authority of India.
“Three aerobridges have been installed at the airport. We are waiting for the safety clearance, which will be done within a week,” said DK Gautam, Director, Jammu airport.
“A team of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation is likely to visit the airport for safety clearance. After the clearance, the aerobridges will be thrown open to passengers,” he added.
26/08/18 Amit Khajuria/Tribune

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Attack on airport staff: 5 arrested

Ahmadabad: Airport police filed complaint against 10 persons who had allegedly attacked airport staff when they went to take possession of parking services at the airport after the services of the outsourced company were discontinued. Five accused were arrested from the spot. Since the time airport authority had terminated the parking contract of MSSM enterprise and served notice to vacate the premises, there have been issues.
Passengers had complained of long parking queues while leaving the airport terminal, forcing them to shell out money.
Airports Authority of India after about a year’s service with parking contractor MSSM decided to suspend its services on August 24. As per the complaint by airport official Vijaydas Harkantadas, after the termination of the contract, staff of the old contractor had not vacated the premises and continued to collect parking fees from visitors.
So, on Friday night he and other staff members reached the parking area to take possession of parking area. But, the agency’s men refused to vacate the area and allegedly beat him and other staff members.
27/08/18 Ahmedabad Mirror

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Nagpur Airport to conduct year-long study on bird hazards

The Mihan India Limited (MIL) that operates and maintains the Nagpur airport plans to conduct a year-long ecological study on bird hazards in the 15-km-radius of Nagpur Airport, in order to study the community composition of birds in different seasons, along with habitat relation of avian communities.

The aviation industry has been grappling with the challenging task of dealing with birds hitting aircrafts. At times, this leads to engine failure or emergency landings, which can be a cause for a potential threat to the lives of passengers and crew on board.

The MIL in a bid document floated, stated that it is conducting an ecological study in the vicinity of Nagpur Airport airfield to study community composition in different seasons and further training the operations and wildlife management personnel to identity bird species and apply correct management techniques for each species.
26/08/18 Mehul R Thakkar/DNA

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Gas pipelines at city airport: ONGC told to find solution

Surat: The district administration has directed Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) to work out a solution for rerouting or covering of the buried sour gas pipelines passing through Surat airport, which are proving to be a major irritant in the proposed extension of runway from 2,905 metres to 3,810 metres.
District collector Dr Dhaval Patel in a meeting held with officials of ONGC and Airports Authority of India (AAI) two days ago discussed the issue of the buried sour gas pipelines passing through the airport.

The meeting was held after the state government and the AAI jointly decided to take ONGC on board to work out a solution for rerouting or covering of the pipelines in the airport area in a time-bound manner.

ONGC had invited expression of interest (EoI) for the safe operation of the buried pipeline six months ago, but things are moving at a snail’s speed.

26/08/18 Times of India

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Flight to Frankfurt to resume from October 29

Pune: German airline Lufthansa will resume its Pune-Frankfurt flight from October 29. It had suspended the service in July citing operational and commercial reasons.
"We can confirm that Lufthansa will resume operation from Pune. The first flight will take off from the city on October 29. Flights can be booked through travel agencies or by logging on to www.lufthansa.com," a Lufthansa spokesperson told TOI.

The flight will depart from Pune at 2.10am and arrive at Frankfurt at 8.45am.

The resumption of the flight will provide relief to passengers from Pune who regularly travel to destinations in Europe and the US. The Pune-Frankfurt will be operated by Privatair. The airline had increased the flight in July last year to six times a week as against the earlier four.
26/08/18 Joy Sengupta/Times of India

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Anti-hijack drill at Patna airport

Patna: An ‘anti-hijacking mock drill’ was carried out at the Patna airport on Saturday to test the preparedness of the concerned to tackle unforeseen situations. The drill began at 9am and ended at 10am.
The exercise was conducted by the Aerodrome Committee under the supervision of state home secretary Amir Subhani, who is the chairman of the committee. Patna airport director Rajender Singh Lahauria was the convener of the drill.

A hypothetical hijack situation was created in which an ABC Airlines’s A320 with call sign VT-ABC and 40 flyers on board was hijacked 40 minutes after its departure from Moonland. The aircraft, headed for Sunland, was forced to land at Patna and the hijackers demanded $50,000 and release of their three associates from the Kolkata jail.

Different agencies like the Central Industrial Security Force, Air Traffic Controller and others swung into action and negotiations continued for about 45 minutes. Subhani advised the committee members to prepare a list of second and third responders in case the first responder was unable to get connected.
26/08/18 Faryal Rumi/Times of India

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Long queues in airports might be a thing of the past; here is how

The long queues at entry, check-in counters and boarding gates at airports could be a thing of the past. Soon, flyers can use their facial identity for swift and hassle-free movement inside airports. The ministry of civil aviation is planning to roll out this paperless travel scheme, called DigiYatra, starting January next year, with a pilot project at Uttar Pradesh’s Varanasi airport.

“ DigiYatra is planned for four AAI Airports (Kolkata, Vijaywada, Varanasi and Pune) in the first phase. The pilot project at Varanasi is expected to take off in January 2019. The facility at these phase-1 airports will be available by July 2019,” Airport Authority of India (AAI) chairman Guruprasad Mohapatra told FE. For this, airport operators will form a joint venture to steer the DigiYatra project.

A passenger opting for digital travel needs to enrol for the DigiYatra portal, creating a unique ID. This special number would contain details like name and email ID of the air travellers. The DigiYatra ID will also form part of the travel ticket. As per government officials, a passenger’s image captured at the airport will facilitate movement throughout the travel lifecycle.
26/08/18 Arun Nayal/Financial Express

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Mangaluru: 'No immediate proposal for another airport in coast' - DC

Mangaluru: Dakshina Kannada district deputy commissioner (DC), Sasikanth Senthil, said that as of now, there is no immediate proposal for the construction of another airport in coastal Karnataka. He was speaking at a symposium on air service and introduction to air cargo held at the auditorium of Kanara Chamber of Chamber and Industry (KCCI) on Saturday, August 25.

Senthil explained that the current airport in the city is capable handle the demand for the next 50 years and hence, there is no proposal on hand at present for any new airport. Noting that agricultural products from Kasargod and Kodagu are being exported to the Gulf countries through this airport, he said that the issue relating to the construction of separate cargo terminal in the coming days will be jointly discussed by airport authority, KCCI and district administration.
26/08/18 daijiworld

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CM lays Bokaro airport foundation

Dhanbad: Chief minister Raghubar Das and Union minister of state for civil aviation Jayant Sinha on Saturday laid the foundation stone for the expansion of Bokaro airport, paving the way for the launch of commercial flights for Calcutta and Patna under the regional connectivity scheme.

Under an MoU signed between Steel Authority of India Ltd and Airports Authority of India (AAI) in New Delhi on April 24 this year, the airport will be developed at a cost of Rs 52.57 crore and AAI would operate and manage the flight operations.

The development work includes restructuring and strengthening of the existing 1,673-metre long and 30-metre wide runway, the setting up of an expandable low-cost terminal building having six counters and parking facility for 20 cars. A control tower, watch towers and precision approach path indicator are also on the agenda.
26/08/18 Telegraph

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Rs 85 parking fee at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International airport may become history

Authorities at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International airport (SVPI) have discontinued the services of outsourced car parking management agency after they received hordes of complaints in connection to the toll-booth.
The authorities are presently working on a new system which is likely to take away the 10-minute free period, causing inconvenience to the users.
Sources at the airport said the plan for charging a nominal fee is being worked out. In the present system, any car that spends more than ten minutes in the terminal bay pays Rs 85. Users and passengers also complain of long queues that forces them to shell out Rs 85, despite returning within the stipulated time.
"We are now working on a system where we may charge Rs 20 or more on every entry, as a normal fee without any cap on the timing. But the details are being worked upon. Until then, the booth will be handled by the Director General Resettlement which has retired defence personnel."
26/08/18 DNA

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Decide airport snack bar case in 3 weeks: HC

Panaji: The high court of Bombay at Goa on Thursday directed the trial court to decide the dispute over the operation of the snack bar at Goa International Airport within three weeks.

P K hospitality services had approached the trial court in an attempt to block Airports Authority of India’s (AAI) attempt to hand over operations to a new food and beverage agency. AAI, in turn, approached the HC, asking that the trial court be directed to “expedite the hearing” so that attempts to revamp the catering service at the airport were not delayed.

“The learned trial court shall decide the application for temporary injunction on its own merits and in accordance with law as expeditiously as possible and in any event within a period of three weeks,” said Justice C V Bhadang while disposing AAI’s application.
26/08/18 Times of India

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Call grows for using naval air station in tandem with CIAL for civilian flights

Kochi: The opening of naval air station INS Garuda in Kochi for civilian flights following the temporary closure of Cochin International Airport has come as a blessing for those stranded due to one of the worst floods in Kerala’s history.

However, the incident has once again underscored the need for a permanent airfield inside the city for the operation of small civilian aircraft, which has been a long-pending demand. The air station will be closed for civilian ops once Nedumbassery airport reopens.

According to analysts, air traffic from Kochi has been growing at a much faster pace compared to other Indian cities. One of the main shortcomings is that the main airport is around 38 km away from the heart of the city. Aviation analyst Jacob K Philip said the state should explore the feasibility of using the naval air station, which had been a civilian airport till the 2000s, for both civilian and defence purposes as it’s vital for a city like Kochi.
25/08/18  Dhinesh Kallungal/New Indian Express

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Airport multi-level parking facility likely to open in November

Panaji:  The airports authority of India (AAI) expects the Rs50 crore, multi-level car park at Goa International Airport to be ready by early November. Officials are yet to finalise a date for the much-needed car park to be thrown open for use by the public, AAI officials said.
The Rs 50-crore parking facility was built three years ago and was supposed to be inaugurated in December 2017, but it missed the deadline as the bureau of civil aviation security, declaring it a security and safety risk for aircraft, withheld approvals. Sources in the AAI said that after wide-ranging consultations, it was decided to build a blast protection wall between the parking facility and the airport’s terminal bays.

“Work is progressing smoothly. By end October or a week after that, the car park should be ready,” airport director Bhupesh Negi said.
25/08/18 Newton Sequeira/Times of India

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Kochi, India, to reopen in mid-2Q18 after mass floods

Kochi Int'l in the southern Indian state of Kerala is due to reopen on August 29, 2018, following a two-week closure caused by mass floods in the state, the airport operator has announced.

The airport was earlier poised to reopen on August 26, but most of the stakeholders asked the authorities to postpone the date for a few days. The local firms said it would be close to impossible to resume full activities on August 26, mostly due to the lack of staff. Some 90% of employees at the airport have been affected by the floods and many of them have left the area.

Service providers would also face significant obstacles with arranging supplies. This would negatively affect the regularity of operations at the airport.

Nearby hotels, restaurants, and other service providers also remain closed for the time being.
25/08/18 ch-aviation

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Guwahati to be Connected to 6 International Airports

The Union civil aviation ministry is planning to connect the capital city of Assam to six international destinations under the UDAN Draft Scheme Document of International Air Connectivity Scheme.

The objective of the scheme is to enhance international air connectivity between Indian states and select international destinations through provision of financial support to airlines.

The draft of the scheme has been placed in the website of ministry and Airports Authority of India for wider consultation of the stakeholders. The ministry has through a notification sought inputs and comments on the draft from interested stakeholders by September 4, 2018.

According to the scheme, the draft of which has been put up in the website of the ministry, Guwahati is likely to have direct air connectivity with Dhaka, Kathmandu, Yangon, Singapore, Bangkok, and Kuala Lumpur.
25/08/18 North East Today

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Flybus service between airport, Mysuru a hit

Bengaluru: Buoyed by the growing patronage for its luxury 'Flybus' operations that directly connect the Kempe Gowda International Airport with a few cities in South India, the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) will increase its services to Mysuru shortly. With services to Tirupati launched last week and that to Kozhikode being contemplated, this first-of-its kind amenity in the country looks set to expand its footprint.

Launched in 2013 with the first bus running between KIA and Mysuru on August 14, services run to Mysuru, Madikeri, Kundapur, Coimbatore via Salem and Tirupati presently. Eight high-end buses, which have in-built toilets, run 16 round trips (onward and return) between Mysuru and the Bengaluru airport.
BT Prabhakar Reddy, Divisional Controller, Bengaluru Central Division, KSRTC, told The New Indian Express, "The four-hour trip from Mysuru to KIA is quite popular among passengers. Since it does not enter inside the City, the traffic problems faced by Bengalureans are avoided."
25/08/18 New Indian Express

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Puducherry govt to seek fund from Home Ministry

Puducherry: The Puducherry administration propose to seek funds from the union Home Ministry to purchase land from Tamil Nadu for the airport expansion project here, Tourism Minister Malladi Krishna Rao has said.
In an informal chat with mediapersons here on Thursday night before leaving for New Delhi, Mr
Malladi said the land acquisition was not materialising due to high cost involved.
Though a meeting with the officials from Puducherry government, chairman of Airport Authority of India and Tamil Nadu government officials was held recently, and subsequently followed up by involving the Civil aviation ministry, it came to naughts over funding the land acquisition, he added.
24/08/18 UNI

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Jabalpur airport to be upgraded

Airports authority of India (AAI) has begun the process of upgrading Jabalpur airport to provide better services to flyers of the region. Union minister of commerce & industry and civil aviation Suresh Prabhu recently laid the foundation stone.

Jabalpur is a growing industrial city with promising tourism options. AAI anticipated the rise in passenger traffic and consequently proposed the expansion plan to accommodate larger aircraft and upgradation of the terminal with modern facilities.

The airport will be built at a total cost of Rs 413 crores. The newly transformed airport will include construction of new domestic passenger terminal building with enhanced peak hour handing capacity of 500 passengers from existing 150 passengers. With increased runway length of 2750 metres with turning pad, the airport will be suitable for operations of A-320 type of aircraft.
25/08/18 Governance Now

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Online campaign for more flights to Bhopal

Bhopal: Around 5,000 fliers from across the globe have come together on social media to demand better air connectivity to and from Bhopal. They have created a Facebook page and started an online campaign.
TOI had reported on Saturday how Bhopal airport is connected to only Mumbai, Delhi and Raipur and its two aerobridges are white elephants because of the low flight count. “I live in Bengaluru. Every time I have to land at Indore and travel by road to Bhopal as there is no connectivity. There is a huge demand to connect Bhopal with southern parts of the country like Bengaluru and Hyderabad,” said frequent flyer Prachi Baluapuri. She is the admin of the FB page created to raise demand for better air connectivity from Bhopal airport. Members of the group are from diverse backgrounds — businessman, professors, entrepreneurs, IT employees and students. In the FB survey, flyers were asked which cities need to be connected with Bhopal and the top choices were Bengaluru, Pune and Hyderabad.
Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Jaipur, Nagpur and Lucknow also got a lot of votes. Many want a direct flight from Raja Bhoj Airport to Dubai. A member of the group campaigning for change, Rajat Mittal, pointed out that all flights from Bengaluru and Hyderabad towards Delhi fly over Bhopal. “Why not give a halt at Bhopal?” he asked. Another frequent flyer, Amit Kumar Jain, said air connectivity is a big problem for Bhopal. “I am sure that with better air connectivity, Bhopal’s economic growth will also take off. If the Madhya Pradesh capital is linked to all big cities of the country by air, it will be transformed,” said Jain.
25/08/18 Ramendra Singh/Times of India

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10 new flights to operate from Shirdi Airport by October-end

Pune: Around 10 new flights are expected to take off from the Shirdi Airport, Maharashtra Airport Development Company Limited (MADC) officials said.
C S Gupta, executive director (technical) of MADC, which is managing the airport, said, “As many as 10 airlines have proposed to start flight operations to different destinations from Shirdi airport. The airlines will do a further assessment before things are finalised. The proposed flights include a Jet Airways flight from Delhi for which the airline has proposed to fly a Boeing,” Gupta told TOI.
Currently, Alliance Air, a subsidiary of Air India, operates two flights — one to Hyderabad and another to Mumbai, from Shirdi.
25/08/18 Joy Sengupta/Times of India

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Delhi’s IGI airport a hub of gold smuggling

New Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport has become a hub of gold smuggling, with more than 100 cases registered from January to June this year alone, according to information available with the Ministry of Finance. The Customs Department has seized gold worth around Rs 4,602 lakh between January and June from those trying to smuggle into India the yellow metal in the form of biscuits or jewellery. In terms of weight, around 150 kg of gold has been impounded by the Customs Department

According to highly placed sources in the Customs Department, gold is smuggled into India from places like Hong Kong, Dubai, Singapore, Bangkok and even Turkmenistan, where prices are relatively lower than in India and the differential translates into huge profits in India.

Sources in both the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), which is responsible for maintaining security at airports, and the Customs Department, said that much of the smuggling happens in connivance with the airport staff and sometimes with the involvement of the Customs officials themselves.
25/081/8 Dibyendu Mondal/Sunday Guardian Live

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Expressions of Interest called for Navi Mumbai airport project

Mumbai: The Navi Mumbai airport might be unlikely to meet the 2019 end deadline set by the chief minister of Maharashtra, but a significant step towards construction of the second airport for Mumbai was taken this week with Expressions of Interest (EOI) sought from developers for the Rs 16,000 crore project.

On Friday, the Navi Mumbai International Airport Pvt Ltd (NMIAL), the special purpose entity formed by GVK and CIDCO to develop, operate and maintain the airport invited EOI for engineering, procurement and construction work. The deadline for submitting EOI is September 10.


Among the work to be carried out for the airport project is construction of terminal building and airfield which includes runway, taxiway network, apron, airside infrastructure and also landside infrastructure like ancillary buildings, multi level car park, roadway network etc, said the notice.

24/08/18 Manju V/Times of India

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No runway at Bihar’s Darbhanga airport, might delay government's ambitious UDAN plans

New Delhi: The Indian government’s UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik) scheme, also known as the Regional Connectivity Scheme, is far from having a smooth take off in Bihar’s Darbhanga due to a very critical setback – lack of runway.
Construction work at the airport has been stalled due to lack of experts in runway construction.
“The government’s ambitious project is facing obstacles. The Darbhanga airport in Bihar has not been made operational because the ministry is unable to find professionals who can complete the construction of runways,” a senior official in the Ministry of Civil Aviation told ANI.
He further added, “It was an ambitious and popular project, and it was a long-standing demand of many in Bihar. We wanted this project to be completed within this year but now it seems impossible.”
The airport comes under the control of the Indian Air Force and is part of RCS.
24/08/18 Times Now News

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Hubballi: Launch of air freight service benefits traders

Hubballi: Traders from North Karnataka have now benefitted with Airport Authority of India (AAI) giving permission to start air cargo services from Hubballi.

Currently, Indigo and Spicejet passenger flights have been given permission to carry cargo and Air India is planning to start the service soon.

“Efforts are being made to construct a separate building for the cargo service in the airport. Necessary facilities have been provided for this additional service. Businessmen from Hubballi can easily send their products as well as receive products from other cities,” Hubballi airport director S K Ahilya told media.
24/08/18 daijiworld

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6-hour flight delay leaves passengers to Dubai grounded for about 10 hours

Pune: Passengers flying to Dubai from Pune on an Air India flight suffered a delay of nearly 6 hours on Thursday.
The flight was supposed to take off at 3.40pm and finally departed around 9.35pm. Sources attributed the delay to the late arrival of the flight from Dubai.

“The flight arrives from Dubai to Pune and waits at the airport for some time before flying back to the city in the United Arab Emirates with passengers. On Thursday, the flight from Dubai was delayed. We don’t know what led to the delay,” an official told TOI.

A passenger, who did not wish to be named, said, “This was the first time I am going to Dubai with my wife to visit our son. I came to the airport around 11:20am, checked in and completed all formalities by 1pm. We were stuck at the airport for at least 10 hours. The airport in Pune is not that big so that we could pass our time. It was frustrating.”
24/08/18 Joy Sengupta/Times of India

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Air cargo service begins from Hubballi

The long-standing demand of the traders and industrialists of North Karnataka fulfilled with the
launch of air cargo service from Hubballi. The Airport Authority of India has given a green signal for
the freight service and at present Indigo and Spice Jet passenger fights are carrying goods from
Hubballi to major cities of the country.
The government-owned Air India is also thinking on these lines and it may also start the similar
service soon.
Speaking to DH, Hubbali Airport Director S K Ahilya said, permission had been granted to Indigo
and Spice Jet to carry cargo in their passenger flights. Necessary facilities had been provided for
this additional service. Businessmen from Hubballi could transport their products to other cities
and similarly, they could also get products from other cities to Hubballi. "Efforts
are being made to
construct a separate building for the cargo service in the airport," she said.
24/08/18 Raju Vijapur/Deccan Herald

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To tackle bird-hits, AMC to remove illegal buildings

Ahmedabad: To tackle frequent incidents of bird-hits at the Sardar Patel International Airport, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) has decided to remove all illegal constructions around the airport boundary wall.

The AMC had earlier carried out a survey and marked 198 residences in the area. Standing committee chairman, Amul Bhatt, said the AMC will check documents of these 198 residents who have been staying there for a long time. “If the documents are found to be genuine, they would be rehabilitated, and the remaining will be removed,” he said.

The encroachment is mostly on the land of the Airport Authority of India (AAI) and hence in coordination with the AAI officials, the same would be removed.
24/08/18 Times of India

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