Northeast to get Rs.93 crore for airport development

New Delhi: Giving a major boost to the air transport segment for the remote northeast region, the government Monday allocated Rs.93 crore in the union budget 2011-12 to airport development in the region.

'Airports Authority of India (AAI) has been provided with budgetary support of Rs.280.15 crore, out of which Rs.93.48 crore has been earmarked for development of airports in the northeastern states,' according to the union budget 2011-12.

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee allocated a total of Rs.9,071.56 crore to the civil aviation sector, which includes Rs.7,371.56 crore in unplanned and Rs.1,700 crore in planned expenditure.

28/02/11 IANS/Sify

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Water seeps, Patna airport officials see red

Patna: Airport authorities at the Jaya Prakash Narayan International Airport here had to face acute embarrassment on Monday when water seeped through the ceiling of the terminal building causing great inconvenience to waiting passengers.

Water seepage took place in the area housing the Air India office in the terminal building. The area leading to the only eatery shop in the terminal building was covered with a thick layer of water from early morning to around noon.

28/02/11 Alok K N Mishra/Times of India

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India Studies Cooperation with Kulon Progo Airport

Yogyakarta: The Indian Prime Minister will meet with Yogyakarta Governor Sultan Hamengku Buwono X, to discuss the construction of Kulon Progo Airport. The meeting follows on from a MoU between PT Angkasa Pura and the Indian government to build the airport under a cooperative agreement. “Next month,” said Tjipto Haribowo, chief of the Yogyakarta Transportation, Communication and Information Office.

India is not the only country interested in investing. The Czech Republic is also interested and has already looked into the project.

25/02/11 TEMPO Interactive

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Mumbai airport likely to get body scanners

Mumbai: A full body-scanner, security cameras and many more electronic gadgets to map approach areas at airports across the country are likely to be part of a Rs 600-crore plan of the ministry of civil aviation.

The ministry will spend the amount only to upgrade security at airports in India, particularly those which fall under the jurisdiction of the Airports Authority of India (AAI). Private airports, like Mumbai and Delhi, may get body-scanners, the need for which has been increasingly felt by security agencies at these airports. But officials at these airports said the decision has to be finalized and sanctioned by the ministry.

"There was a high-level meeting between ministry officials, Central Industrial Security Force ( CISF) officers and Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) officials on security needs are airports. The main focus was on AAI airports, which handle sizeable passenger traffic but lag behind in gadgets to aid personnel. Bigger airports like Mumbai and Delhi may finally get the nod for body-scanners,'' a senior ministry official said.

Officials said Mumbai airport has also been told to expedite the installation of a perimeter intrusion warning system, work on which has started.

28/02/11 Chinmayi Shalya/Times of India

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‘Indians treated badly at Tripoli airport’

Chennai: Just as Chubby thought that his ordeal was finally over after being dropped off at the Tripoli airport by a pro-Moammer Gaddafi supporter, a new problem cropped in. Finding Indian families among 50,000odd stranded passengers was quite a task.

When he eventually found some, he was told to fill up a form given by embassy officials before he could board a flight.

"My pleas did not yield any result. Three times I joined the queue for the form and three times I was asked to stand aside."

"I felt insulted. What we Indians went through was in stark contrast to people of other nationalities. Other embassy officials waited outside the airport with sporting the national flag to usher us in," he added.

It was an Air India official who came to his rescue. "He promised me that he won't leave without me.

"Only after that assurance, I could relax a bit. I was the last person to board the first flight home," the materials manager said.

Officials of the ministry of external affairs worked with clockwork precision and guided all evacuees to their respective State guest houses, he revealed.

28/02/11 Shiba Prasad Sahu/ExpressBuzz

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Rs 1.2-cr worth electronic goods seized at airport

Chennai: Sleuths of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) on Saturday night seized a 400-kg pallet containing electronic goods worth over Rs 1 crore at the Chennai airport and arrested one person. The pallet had been brought out of the cargo complex without documents and clearance from customs. A hunt is on for a Chennai based gang that might have been involved.

As per the records with the airport and customs, the consignment which landed in Chennai two days ago from Singapore was kept in a store room because nobody came to receive it. It was then brought out without the knowledge of customs and airport officials from the high security cargo complex, sources said.

Based on tip-off, DRI officials came to the cargo complex around 8 pm and stopped a TATA Ace truck. The driver and three other occupants said the pallet contained automobile components but remained silent when asked for the documents. Three of them managed to flee but officials caught one. He was identified as R Ramesh (33) of Royapuram who had led the illegal operation for years, officials said. The DRI sleuths opened the pallet and found digital cameras, video cameras, batteries and other items worth Rs 1.20 crore.

28/02/11 Times of India

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New ATC body likely to be functional by June

Mumbai/New Delhi: The government has initiated the process of corporatising Air Traffic Control (ATC) and an independent body to run the services is likely to become functional by June this year.

The move to set up the new entity comes almost three years after a high-powered committee, headed by former Cabinet Secretary Naresh Chandra, had recommended hiving off air traffic services from the Airports Authority of India (AAI) and bring it under an independent corporate entity.

The proposed entity, to be called Air Navigation Services (ANS) Corporation, is likely to become functional by June, though it would remain as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the state-run AAI for a few years, official sources told PTI.

It would take at least another three years before the ANS Corporation is converted into a totally independent body under the Civil Aviation Ministry, they said.

Once the corporation becomes a separate entity, it would have its own Board headed by a Chairman.

"The government has already appointed a Member (CNS) in the AAI Board to look after the operational aspects of the proposed ANS Corporation," the sources said.

Besides, AAI''s Executive Director (Finance) has been entrusted with the task of carrying out a study of its financial viability. "The way things are moving now, it is likely to be functional from June this year," they said.

Currently, air traffic services, which comprise ATC and Communication, Navigation and Surveillance (CNS), are part of the AAI.

However, the government intends to segregate them so that AAI can focus on its core competence area of airport development and maintenance, the sources said.

27/02/11 PTI/MSN.com

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Iridium haul at airport, four youths detained

Kolkata: Early on Friday, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) seized 4 kg of iridium powder, 5 kg of Ruthenium powder, six watches worth Rs5.75 lakh, and 35,400 memory cards from four youths of Kidderpore who reached Kolkata airport from Hong Kong via Bangkok. The goods were pegged at Rs2.12 crore. This is the biggest such haul in eastern India in recent time.
DRI sources said the four youths landed at NSCBI airport past midnight. The DRI officials subjected them to a search process which found packets covered with black tapes. One kg of iridium is worth Rs18 lakh while a kg of Ruthenium is worth Rs6 lakh. Sources revealed that iridium is often used to make gold weigh more. Many jewellers use iridium powder to deceive customers.
DRI officers said that these youths could not furnish any valid papers in support of their consignment.
Both DRI and Narcotics Control Bureau have been active in the airport, ever since a lot of banned drugs were found to have been smuggled out of it.
26/02/11 Times of India

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Close shave for flights

Calcutta: Two aircraft, one of which could not be tracked, came on a collision course on Thursday morning but an on-flight warning system steered the pilots to safety.
The Airports Authority of India has ordered an inquiry. “The reason why the flights came so close to each other would be known after the probe,” said Gautam Mukherjee, the AAI regional executive director (eastern India).
A Jet Airways flight from Delhi to Singapore and an IndiGo flight from Bhubaneswar to Delhi came within a few minutes of crashing into each other over Otaba, near Raipur, around 260km from Calcutta.
The region falls in the “area south” zone of the Calcutta air traffic control. “The ATC was unaware of the Jet Airways flight as it was not blinking on the radar. Nor was there any contact between the pilot and the ATC through voice communication,” said an ATC official.
The Jet Airways flight, travelling from northwest to southeast, was at an altitude of 35,000ft. The IndiGo aircraft, from southeast to northwest, was at 34,000ft. Sources said the ATC, in the dark about the Singapore-bound flight, asked the IndiGo pilot to climb to 36,000ft.
25/02/11 Telegraph

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Pvt airlines owe Rs 352 crore to AAI

New Delhi: Private airlines owe Rs 352 crore to the Airports Authority of India (AAI) of which Kingfisher Airlines, which has the second largest market share in terms of passenger traffic, has a due of around Rs 257 crore.
Kingfisher owes Rs 257.62 crore to the AAI, while Jet Airways Rs 38.49 crore and its low cost arm JetLite Rs 13.96 crore, as on January 31, civil aviation minister and minister for overseas affairs Vayalar Ravi informed the rajya sabha on Thursday. Low cost carriers, SpiceJet has a due of Rs 16.99 crore, while IndiGo owes Rs 13.29 crore and Go Air Rs 6.77 crore. Paramount Airways, which stopped operations in August last year, owes Rs 4.88 crore to the AAI as landing fee, parking fee, airport charge and other heads.
He said that continuous monitoring is done by the AAI to ensure that the airlines pay their dues in time, and in case of default in payment by the airlines, measures like charging of penal interest, withdrawal of credit facility and putting the airline on 'cash and carry' basis.
24/02/11 PTI/Times of India

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Tariff curbs worry airport developers

The private airport operators — GMR-led Delhi International Airports Ltd and GVK-backed Mumbai International Airports Ltd — are getting jittery over the sector regulator’s approach to fix airport tariff. The Airport Economic Regulatory Authority’s (AERA) wants undermine the state-support agreement between the Airport Authority of India (AAI) and the developers and wants to evaluate the issue afresh. AERA says it is created by an Act of Parliament and sees the agreements as pact between two parties.
The AERA approach would allow it to set new service and operation standards and fix airport charges accordingly. The private airport operators have vehemently opposed the regulator’s intent and have challenged the move in the Appellate Tribunal, apprehending financial losses in future.
The government had in 2006 awarded the concession to operate, manage and develop the Capital’s Indira Gandhi International airport (IGI) to a GMR-led consortium for 30 years with the option of extending it to another 30 years. The Bangalore-headquartered GMR holds the maximum 54% in the joint venture followed by government-controlled AAI. Fraport AG and Eraman Malaysia hold 10% each in the airport company.
“The authority has separately initiated a process to analyse and assess the implications of the principles and mechanics relating to tariff fixation contained in the state-support agreement (SSA). The authority would thereafter separately determine the extent to which the covenants of the SSA would impact the general framework being laid down,” AERA has said in its order in respect to Delhi and Mumbai airports.
25/02/11 Nirbhay Kumar/Financial Express

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New international terminal at Thiruvananthapruam to become functional

Thiruvananthapruam: The new international terminal of the Thiruvananthapruam Airport will become operational on March 1 evening.
An Air India Express flight, flight no. IX-536, from Sharjah will arrive at the new terminal by 6 p.m. and flight no IX-539 to Dubai will leave from the new terminal by 7 p.m., Airport Director G Chandramouli told reporters here on Thursday.
He said that certain minor technical and operational problems had come to light during the trial run on Wednesday. It would be easily sorted out, he said.
The entry to the new terminal will be from the Ananthapuri Hospital side of the newly-constructed ramp and the exit will be towards the Chakkai side. Until the width of the ramps is widened, vehicles will also be allowed through the service gate on the Chakkai-Shanghumugham road.
Visitors will be allowed to enter the terminal building, up to the check-in areas, by issuing a ticket. The charge of the ticket will be Rs 60 per passenger.
The Airport Director also said that domestic services would continue to operate from the existing domestic terminal. In the due course, the existing international terminal will be converted as domestic terminal.
25/02/11 ExpressBuzz

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Delhi airport: Rs.1,199 crore in development fee

New Delhi: Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) which operates the Indira Gandhi International Airport here has collected Rs.1,199 crore in development fee till January 2011, Civil Aviation Minister Valayar Ravi informed the Lok Sabha on Thursday.
"So far funds amounting to Rs.1,199.54 crore have been collected up to the month of January 2011 by M/s Delhi International Airport Pvt. Ltd. (DIAL) at IGI Airport through development fee," Ravi said in a written reply.
The government had approved a levy of development fee of about Rs.1,300 per departing international passenger and Rs.200 per departing domestic passenger from March 1, 2009, he said.
The development fee is for a period of 36 months, which would be used to bridge the funding gap of Rs.1,827 crore in the development of the IGI airport.
"Funds collected through the levy can be utilised only for the construction of such aeronautical assets which will be transferred by DIAL to AAI (Airports Authority of India) upon completion of lease period," he said.
24/02/11 Economic Times

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Airport Metro not an option for passengers on 135 night flights

New Delhi: The Indira Gandhi International Airport operates an average of 745 domestic as well as international flights per day. However, the high-speed Airport Metro services would not be available for passengers between 10 pm and 6 am — affecting around 2,000 passengers.
About 135 of the 745 flights operate between 10 pm and 6 am, airport officials say, adding that most of them are international ones. “The current aim of the Airport link service is to cater to domestic passengers. That’s also one reason why no international airline has been approached by the concessionaire so far. Meanwhile, domestic airlines are reluctant to provide passengers with the facility to directly check in their baggage through city terminals of the Metro link,” an airline official said. To end the impasse between the airlines and private operator Reliance Infra on handling responsibility for the check-in process, the Civil Aviation Ministry has proposed that passengers be charged for this additional service, rather than the airlines.
25/02/11 Geeta Gupta/Indian Express

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India urging Libya to open Tripoli airport for its flights

India has urged the Libyan authorities to open up Tripoli airport for its flights so that air evacuation could take place.
The developments came as 'Scotia Prince', the ferry ship hired by India to evacuate stranded Indians in Libya began sailing towards restive Benghazi.
Speaking to ANI, Secretary (East) Lata Reddy said: " We are urging Libyan authorities to make arrangements for our flights to land in Tripoli airport, we have flights on standby here and they can leave once these arrangements are confirmed."
"Very large number of foreign nationals are trying to leave Tripoli at the moment, clearances are taking time, our Ambassador is personally seeking these clearances at the earliest possible time and we hope to began air operation at that time," she added.
According to the Ministry of External Affairs, evacuation is being arranged by sea and air.
'Scotia Prince' a chattered passenger ferry with capacity to seat 1200 persons, has reached Egypt and is to sail for Benghazi to evacuate stranded Indian nationals from Libya.
Ministry of External Affairs personnel and a medical team will be on board to assist the evacuees.
24/02/11 ANI/Sify

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For residents, it’s still very noisy

New Delhi: The country's civil aviation regulator has fixed noise limits for aircraft landing at the Delhi airport but the residents of Vasant Kunj are not satisfied. The residents have been fighting a pitched battle for the last couple of years to curb noise pollution in their area caused by aircraft landing at the Indira Gandhi International Airport.
Thanks to the petition filed by the residents of Vasant Kunj and some other areas near the airport, the Delhi high court had asked the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to take measures to curb the menace. Following this, a night curfew was imposed on runway 29, the flight path of which falls right over Vasant Kunj.
DGCA has now fixed a noise limit of 105 decibels for aircrafts operating from IGIA but the residents say it needs to be lowered. "The idea is to keep the limit so high that there are no violations at all," said Anil Sood of the NGO Chetna, the first to file a petition.
25/02/11 Sidhartha Roy/Hindustan Times

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Flights to get new numbers from Sunday

Kolkata: From Sunday, some of the oldest flights out of Kolkata will disappear from the schedule. Nothing to panic, though, as flights with a different code will replace the ones that do the vanishing act.
With the erstwhile Indian Airlines flights that carried the IC code merging with Air India to sport the common AI code , all flights that carried the IC code will have new flight numbers from Sunday.
AI officials said arrangements had been made to inform passengers about their revised flight numbers through SMS, telephone calls and travel agents. At the airports, the flight information display boards will show both old and new flight numbers and floor-walkers will take care of passengers requiring any assistance.
25/02/11 Times of India

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Jet Airways flight heads back to Guwahati airport after take-off

Guwahati: A Jet Airways flight from Guwahati to Delhi, with 78 passengers on board, returned here about 40 minutes after take-off today following a technical fault in its engine.
Airport sources said that with standard precautionary measures in place, all the passengers and crew on board 9W 2277 disembarked after the Boeing 737-800 plane safely landed back at Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport here at around 5:25 pm, about 40 minutes after take-off.
24/02/11 PTI/MSN

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Flying to Jaipur? Shell out more from Delhi

Jaipur: If you are flying down to Jaipur from the national capital, be ready to shell out more than your counterparts coming from other metros.
Consider these fares: A trip to the city from Delhi will cost a minimum of Rs 3,500 booked a day or week in advance as against the starting fare of Rs 3,200 and Rs 3,300 for long haul destinations (distances above 750 kms) from Mumbai and Kolkata, respectively. Distance between Jaipur and Delhi is about 265 kms, while it is 1200 kms to Mumbai and 1462 kms to Kolkata. At times, fares of return tickets on long haul routes originating from Ahmedabad and Kolkata to the city are almost equal to the one way route from Jaipur to Delhi. Also, the fare to Lucknow from New Delhi, which has a distance of 497 kms, starts from Rs 1,900 only.
25/02/11 Times of India

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International Regulatory Authorities to be Consulted on Mangalore Air Tragedy Report

The Court of Inquiry has submitted the draft final report to the Government. International Civil Aviation Regulations the regulatory authorities of the State of Manufacture and State of Design have to be consulted for formal comments on the Draft Final Report before it is finalised. Accordingly, the views of Federal Aviation Administration of United States in pursuance of America have been sought. Action on the recommendations will be taken after finalisation and acceptance of the report by the Government.
The above information was given by the Minister for Civil Aviation Shri Vayalar Ravi in reply to a question in the Lok Sabha on 23 February , 2011.
The Minister also informed the House that all the bodies at the crash site have been identified. Air India Express has started the process of final settlement and as of date 40 cases have already been settled for a total amount of Rs. 24.02 crores (including interim compensation). For the rest of the cases, proceedings is underway to settle the final claim. These claims are being settled as per Carriage by Air Act, 1972 which incorporates the Montreal Convention of International Civil Aviation Organisation. After the tragic crash, the following steps have been taken (i) a Civil Aviation Safety Advisory Council (CASAC) has been set up under the Chairmanship of Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation; (ii) directions were issued to all concerned regarding adherence to Standard Operating Procedures; (iii) special audit of airports identified as critical was undertaken; (iv) A Surveillance and Enforcement Division has been set up in Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
24/02/11 PRESS RELEASE/Press Information Bureau

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Proposals to construct 11 greeenfield airports

During the last three years, Government of India (GoI) has received the proposals from the respective State Governments for setting up of Greenfield airports at Sindhudurg (2008), Shirdi (2009), Solapur (2009) & Bolera (district- Amarawati) (2010) in Maharashtra; Bijapur (2008), Gulbarga (2008), Hassan (2008), Simoga (2008) & Bellary (2010) in Karnataka; Kushinagar (2009) in Uttar Pradesh; and Dholera (2009) in Gujarat.
The Status of the projects of the State/UTs for setting up of the Greenfield airports which have been granted 'in-principle' approval during the last three years is as under:
Sindhudurg in Maharashtra: Government of India has accorded “in-principle” approval to the Government of Maharashtra for setting up of a greenfield airport at Sindhudurg in Maharashtra in September, 2008. The State Government of Maharashtra has appointed Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) as nodal agency for construction of the airport. 271 hectares of land has been acquired by MIDC. The works pertaining to diversion of telephone, electricity and water supply lines has been completed.
Gulbarga, Bijapur, Hassan and Shimoga in Karnataka: The Steering Committee in its first meeting held on 13.06.2008 considered the proposals of the State Government of Karnataka to set up airports at Gulbarga, Bijapur, Hassan and Shimoga. The Steering Committee has granted ‘in-principle’ approval to above four projects subject to the conditions that SOP would be formalized between DGCA, AAI and Ministry of Defence regarding air space management for the airports at Gulbarga and Bijapur in view of the existing defence operations at Pune and Bidar respectively. The present status of these airport projects is as under:
Bijapur Airport:The SOP has been finalised. Project Development Agreement between the State Government and M/s MARG Ltd. was entered on 18 January, 2010. Out of 728.01 acres of land, required for the project 385.22 acres land has been acquired and handed over to the developer.
Gulbarga Airport: Project Development Agreement (PDA) between State Government and Gulbarga Airport Developers Limited (GADL) was entered on 02.04.2008 and 670 acres of land has been acquired and handed over to GADL during May, 2010. Supplementary PDA and Land Lease Agreement have been signed on 22 May, 2010 with GADL. Necessary clearances from Ministry of Environment & Forests have been obtained. The construction work has been started according to Master Plan.
Hassan Airport: Project Development Agreement (PDA) between the State Government and Jupiter Aviation Logistics has been signed on 06 September, 2007. Out of 960 acres of land, 536.24 acres of land has been acquired. The developer has obtained the Environment clearance from the Ministry of Environment and Forests and consent from the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board. Master Plan for the project has also been prepared.
Simoga Airport: PDA between State Government and Shimoga Airport Development Limited (SADL) was entered on 02 April, 2008. Land to the extent of 662.38 acres has been acquired. Necessary clearances from Ministry of Environment & Forests have been obtained. The work on the project has been started in accordance with the Master Plan.
Kushinagar International Airport in Uttar Pradesh: Government of India has granted ‘in-principle’ approval to the Government of Uttar Pradesh for setting up of a Greenfield International airport at Kushinagar in Uttar Pradesh on 21 September, 2010. The necessary clearances from Department of Customs, IMD and Ministry of Environment & Forest have been obtained.
The timeline for construction of airport projects depends upon many factors such as land acquisition, availability of mandatory clearances, financial closure, etc.
The above information was given by the Minister for Civil Aviation Shri Vayalar Ravi in reply to a question in the Lok Sabha on 23 February, 2011.
24/02/11 Press Release/Press Information Bureau

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Kingfisher Airlines to begin Male-Mumbai flights

Male: The Civil Aviation Department of the Maldives yesterday licensed Indian Kingfisher Airlines to operate scheduled flight between Male and India’s Mumbai, commencing from March 21.
Director of Air Transport at the department, Abdulla Rasheed said the airline would operate daily flights on an A-320 aircraft, which has a passenger capacity of 174.
Kingfisher earlier operated flights from Gan International Airport in Addu City and to Mumbai.
The Kingfisher flight will arrive in Male International Airport at 3.10pm and will leave to Mumbai at 4.20pm.
24/02/11 Haveeru Online

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Rail station to Delhi airport in 16 minutes

New Delhi: Land in Delhi and “take off” again — this time in the Metro. A 90-minute drive to the capital’s airport from the city centre became a 16-minute breeze with the Metro connecting the two points today, but without the much-awaited baggage check-in facility that has been promised in two weeks.
Delhi has now joined cities like London, Hong Kong, Seoul and Kuala Lumpur to have a high-speed link connecting their city centres with their airports.
Trains on the 20km corridor from New Delhi station to Indira Gandhi International Airport’s (IGI) Terminal 3 will run every 20 minutes for 16 hours everyday, from 6am to 10pm, at a dizzy 105km per hour. The speed may be raised to 120km if the Research, Designs and Standard Organisation, a railway ministry unit, flashes the green signal. It takes between 60 and 90 minutes now to cover the distance whether by cabs and buses.
Terminal 3 is part of the international airport, from where fliers can reach the domestic wing in 10-15 minutes in shuttles run by the airport. A customer-care helpline — 011-30802080 — also started working from 2pm today.
23/02/11 The Telegraph

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IGI - the busiest airport in India

New Delhi: Indira Gandhi International Airport in the national capital is the busiest airport in the country.
The IGI airport handled an average of 741 flights per day between April and December last year, while Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport stood second with 695 flight movements per day, the Lok Sabha was informed today.
Civil Aviation Minister Vayalar Ravi said the Delhi airport handles 741 aircraft movements -- which include landing and take-offs -- per day while Mumbai handles 695 per day. He said sometime delays occur when traffic density exceeds the runway handling capacity but to address this, various measures have been taken like air traffic control automation system at Delhi airport is being upgraded, advanced surface movement guidance and control system has been installed.
24/02/11 Indian Express

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Cancun International Airport Named Best Airport in Latin America

The Airports Council International (ACI) has named the Cancun International Airport as Latin America’s best airport for the second year in a row.
Thanks to its quality of its services the airport has been placed among the top five spots worldwide among airports that serve between 5 and 15 million passengers per year.
This is a product of ASUR’s successful job of constantly elevating the quality standards in both service and customer care that it provides for its passengers.
The award ceremony will take place on the 7th of April during the Regional Assembly of the ACI- ASIA, in new Dehli, India, lead by the General Director of the Airport Council International Angela Gittens.
23/02/11 Ozgur Tore/Travel News Gazatte

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New airport security plan: Random frisking

New Delhi In the wake of the recent Moscow airport bombing incident, the government has decided to step up airport security by introducing random frisking and baggage screening at terminal entry gates across the country. All those entering the airport building — visitors, passengers and airport staff — may be subjected to random security checks.
The country’s apex civil aviation security body — Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) — issued a circular last week for implementation of the decision with immediate effect. A senior BCAS official confirmed the development.
In January, an explosion took place at the Moscow’s Domodedovo airport in the arrivals hall killing at least 35 people and injured more than 100.
“A high-level meeting was held to review the security arrangements at airports after the Moscow blast. In the meeting it was decided that such a move is necessary in keeping with the threat perception,” a Civil Aviation Ministry official told The Indian Express.
23/02/11 Smita Aggarwal/Times of India

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Swedish fighter jets make a halt at Chennai airport

Chennai: Six fighter jets and two transport aircraft made a halt at Chennai airport since Sunday night. The aircraft left on Tuesday noon. The purpose of their visit is not known.
"The planes came from Ahmedabad and has left for Andaman and Nicobar Islands," said a senior Airports Authority of India ( AAI) official. "We learnt that the jets came in a formation and left to either the Andamans or Sri Lanka. The fighter jets were parked on the unused secondary runway that is closed for expansion works."
Air force planes belonging to other countries are allowed into India with special permission. A coordinating agency is usually appointed to interact with them to assign flight routes and parking space.
Commander of Tambaram Air Force station group captain Mittal said he was not aware of the visit. "If it was a friendly military joint operation, we would have been notified and the jets would have landed at our air field in Tambaram." The aircrat instead used the civil airport.
23/02/11 Times of India

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Aviation officials to review check-in option in two weeks

New Delhi: The airport Metro line was inspected by a team of aviation ministry officials, security personnel and airport management on Tuesday, a day before it will be opened for the public.
Led by civil aviation secretary Nasim Zaidi, the team comprised of joint secretaries Alok Sinha and Rohit Nandan, bureau of civil aviation security commissioner, chairman of airlines operations committee Pervaiz Khan, CISF, and officials of Delhi International Airport (P) Ltd and Reliance.
"Everything except check-in facilities is in place. It took exactly 18 minutes to cover one leg of the journey from the railway station to the airport," said an official.
Check-in facility will not be made available immediately but officials were hopeful that airlines and Reliance would be able to work out a solution soon. "We will take a review of check-in facilities in two weeks. A lot of options are being considered and we are confident of finding a solution soon," said Zaidi. According to sources, no breakthrough has yet been achieved between airlines and Reliance who are stuck on payment of passenger charges. Reliance has been asking airlines to pay a Rs 80 per passenger charge as a facilitation fee which airlines say that they will not be able to afford.
22/02/11 Neha Lalchandani/Times of India

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Aviation policy, regulatory framework needs review: BAAI

New Delhi: There is a need to review the country''s policy and regulatory framework as per the global norms for the growth of business aviation sector in India, the BAAI has said.
"The sector (business aviation) is poised to be vital for our economy in future. We have to review policy and regulatory framework as per the global norms," Captain Karan Singh, Vice President of Business Aviation Association for India (BAAI) said during 2nd Indian Business Aviation Expo.
Speaking about the scope for development of business aviation sector, he said it is flourishing in other parts of the world and India just needs to adopt those business models.
Describing the sector as more than just an "enabler", he said it is the catalyst for the economy.
According to an estimate about 1.2 million people in US are directly employed in the business aviation sector and the same holds good for India, he added.
As an emerging economy, India remains the preferred destination for investments which can further leverage GDP growth over the next few years.
21/02/11 msn.com

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Oldest operational military aircraft lands in Jammu

Jammu: India's oldest operational military aircraft 'Pushpak', which was extensively used in the 1965 and 1971 Indo-Pakistan Wars, on Tuesday landed at the airbase here enroute its cross-country air expedition. "It is now one of the only Pushpak aircraft which is still flying in the country and h
ave landed up here as part of cross-country air-expedition," chief of expedition team, Brig A S Saidhu told reporters here at the IAF station here.
"Pushpak was actively flown by the pilots in 1965 and 1971 wars while manning the Air Observation Posts (AOPs) along the Indo-Pak border," Brig Saidhu, also the senior most test pilot of Army Aviation, said.
As part of the silver jubilee celebrations of Army Aviation, a Pushpak expedition was flagged-off during the ongoing Aero India 2011 show in Bangalore.
"It is one of the rare spectacle to see this aircraft landing and taking off from here. It is a lifetime opportunity to see this aircraft flying even today," officiating defence spokesman (Jammu), S N Acharya said.
"I have seen this in my book. But I am very happy to see the aircraft flying. I was not even born then when it used to fly during the wars," Sangeeta, a school student who watched the plane land, said.
22/02/11 Press Trust Of India/Hindustan Times

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Ahmedabad to get airport express service soon

Ahmedabad: Just like Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport and Delhi's Indira Gandhi International airport, Ahmedabad's Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport will soon have 'Airport Express Service'.
However, for the first time, the passengers will be able to make use of auto rickshaw as compared to taxis and other high-end cars. The services will be launched by Nirmal foundation's G-Auto with the support of Gujarat government and airport authority of India and State Bank of India.
Some of the distinctive features include 24x7 service, a booking counter at the arrival terminal, fare as per govt approved meter and well-trained drivers. The facility will be used to pick up passengers from city to airport by booking the service @ 927 444 4444.
21/02/11 Daily News & Analysis

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Delhi Metro's airport service to begin on Wednesday

New Delhi; Delhi Metro's showcase Airport Express Line , which promises to take passengers from the city's shopping hub Connaught Place to Indira Gandhi International Airport in 20 minutes, will begin its commercial operations from Wednesday.
The 23-km high-speed link on which trains will initially run at a speed of 105km per hour will open nearly five months after it missed its original deadline of 2010 Commonwealth Games.
"The line will begin its commercial operations on Wednesday", a Delhi Metro source said.
CISF spokesperson Rohit Katiyar said the force will conduct anti-sabotage operations on the Airport Express corridor tomorrow.
"The deployment of CISF personnel on the Line is on. Anti-sabotage operations will be done on the line tomorrow and on February 23 morning, the CISF will be ready for operations," the source said.
However, a formal inauguration of the high-speed link, the first Metro corridor in the country to come up on the Public-Private-Partnership mode, is likely to take place later.
21/02/11 PTI/Economic Times

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IndiGo flies ahead of Air India in January

New Delhi: There is good news in the air for Haj pilgrims from the state.
Soon, they would be able to board a direct flight to Jeddah or Medina from Gaya airport. at present, Haj flights operate from Patna airport.
Presently, Haj pilgrims board flights to Jeddah or Medina either via Calcutta or Delhi. The journey between Patna and Jeddah or Medina is time consuming and the pilgrims have to spend a day or sometimes even two days, while a direct journey takes barely four hours.
A four-member committee of Bihar State Sunni Wakf Board visited Gaya on Sunday to assess the facilities for Haj pilgrims and the possibility for flight operations from Gaya airport. The committee members led by board chairman Mohammad Irshadullah visited Gaya airport and spoke with the officials of Airports Authority of India including the airport controller. The controller told the committee members that operation of aircraft having a maximum capacity of 180 passengers was possible from Gaya airport. Around 150 to 160 pilgrims board flights from Patna airport.
The committee members also visited Bodhgaya and visited some hotels to assess the boarding facilities for the pilgrims. They also inspected Hadi Hashmi High School and Hasrat Mohani auditorium on the high school campus, Madarsa Anwarul Uloom and the Madarsa Qasmia.
22/02/11 The Telegraph/Alok Kumar

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AAI gives extra staff, airport cargo handling work resumes

Chennai: Cargo handling operations resumed at the airport on Monday after Airports Authority of India (AAI) agreed to post adequate staff to clear export and import cargo at the warehouse.
Container lorry drivers and other workers struck work unannounced on Thursday and Friday protesting against a delay in unloading and clearing of export cargo. This had lead to a huge pile-up of lorries on the GST road near the air cargo complex. The strike continued on Saturday, affecting operation of the air cargo section.
AAI held discussions with cargo clearing agents and other users on Monday to settle the issue.
Sources said that works resumed after AAI posted around seven staff to handle the bills of export and import consignments and also permitted unloading of cargo from 9 am.
AAI maintained that the cargo complex could handle only 350 tonnes per day. But, close to 450 to 500 tonnes of cargo come for clearance every day. "This has lead to congestion," said an airport official.
22/02/11 Times of India

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Landing scare at IGI airport

New Delhi: Passengers of an Air India flight from Patna to Delhi were expecting to touch down at the IGI Airport seconds later when their aircraft that was descending steadily suddenly climbed again in the air on Sunday night. A Singapore Airlines aircraft that had landed a short while before the IC416's arrival had been unable to clear the runway, forcing the other flight to abort landing at the last minute and take a go-around.
With 18 cases of go-arounds recorded at the IGI Airport in January due to the runway not vacated on time, the ministry of civil aviation has taken a strict view of the situation. A ministry source said: "At present there is no regulation to specify how long an aircraft should take to vacate the active runway, but it should ideally be about 30-35 seconds. We will give pilots 15 days' time to fall in line, and in the meantime, we will collect data on defaulters. If in that time there is no change, the ministry will be forced to take strict action."
The incident took place around 9.40pm when IC 416 with about 130 passengers on board was preparing to land on the new runway 29/11. The Singapore Airlines flight SQ408 from Singapore had landed before its scheduled time of 10.10pm but had not been able to clear the runway.
22/02/11 Neha Lalchandani/Times of India

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Plea for resumption of flights

The delegation consisted of K K Usman, Shamsudheen Olakara and Fareed Thikkodi
The Doha-based Gulf Calicut Air Passengers (Gapac) has requested the Indian civil aviation ministry to intervene directly to mitigate the problems being faced by passengers at Kerala’s Calicut Airport in Malappuram district.
Gapac’s appeal to Indian Civil Aviation Minister Vayalar Ravi during his recent visit to Qatar highlighted the problems being faced by passengers at the airport owing to the irregular operations of the Air India flights.
Ravi was in Doha to attend the global conclave of the Overseas Indian Cultural Congress (OICC), organised by Indian Cultural and Arts Society (Incas).
22/02/11 Gulf Times

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Who is really running Air India?

What ails Air India has been visible over the last few weeks. The Ministry of Civil Aviation finally stepped in to end the four-month-long issue of whether the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Air India Express, Captain Pawan Arora, should be sacked or not.
Last November, the airline Board had terminated his duties alleging irregularities. Despite the Board's decision, Captain Arora continued to function as COO of the state-owned low-cost airline.
It finally required a missive from the Ministry seeking a status report on Captain Arora, which sealed his fate. Captain Arora was inducted into the team to kickstart Air India Express's operations.
However, soon after his appointment, it was alleged that both his and Stephan Sukumar's appointment, who was also inducted as part of the turnaround team by Captain Gustav Baldauf, the Chief Operating Officer (COO), were illegal as the Board had only approved the appointment of Captain Baldauf.
The Board questioned whether the airline could afford the huge salary packages that were being offered to these two employees. Besides, it was also alleged that Captain Arora had not provided correct documentation at the time of applying for the post in Air India Express.
22/02/11 Business Line

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Small airport flies high

Patna: The tag of one of the most dangerous places to land in the country notwithstanding, Jaiprakash Narayan International Airport has witnessed a phenomenal growth in passenger flow in the first three quarters of the current fiscal (2010-11).
The city airport handled 6,21,123 passengers till December last year, 68,783 more than total passengers it catered to in 2009-10. Total 5,52,440 passengers used the airport last fiscal.
Experts attributed the growth in the passenger flow at the airport to the arrival of low-cost airlines to the city and better law and order situation in the state during the NDA regime. With the option of flying at less available, more people are travelling in planes. On the other hand, Biharis settled outside the state are flying back home more frequently because of improved law and order situation in the state.
Besides the rise in passenger flow, movement of aircraft from the airport also reflected the growth trend. The airport had handled 7,448 flights in 2009-10 and the figure has crossed the 7,100-mark (7178) in the first nine months of current fiscal (2010-11).
Expressing happiness over the growth trend in the current fiscal, Patna airport director Arvind Dubey said: “The entry of low-cost operators has contributed in a big way as far as growth in passengers’ flow is concerned. Several people who earlier used to travel by train are now opting to take the aerial route.”
22/02/11 Sanjeev Kumar Verma/The Telegrpah

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Light fog disrupts flights in Delhi

New Delhi: A light blanket of fog in the capital Tuesday morning led to the diversion of a few flights headed to the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport, officials said.
"About three flights, including two international, were diverted due to foggy conditions," an airport official told IANS. According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the minimum temperature was recorded a notch below average at 10.3 degrees Celsius.
However, the fog and chill soon gave way to a sunny and bright morning and the humidity was recorded at 95 percent. The visibility at 8 a.m. was 600 metres.
22/02/11 Indo-Asian News Service/NDTV.com

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Thirumavalavan denied entry into Sri Lanka

Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) president Thol. Thirumavalavan and two of his associates were sent back from the Colombo airport on arrival from Chennai early on Tuesday.
They had come here to attend the funeral of Parvathy Ammal, mother of slain LTTE leader Prabhakaran.
Speaking over phone, Mr. Thirumavalavan said that soon after he landed, he and the two others were escorted to the office of the Chief Immigration Officer (CIO) at the airport.
He was told that he would not be allowed entry. Mr. Thirumavalavan asked if there was any criminal case against him in Sri Lanka and also informed the CIO that he was a Member of Parliament. “I asked them what the reason to send me back was. But there was no satisfactory reply,” he said.
The CIO maintained that he had instructions from the Controller-General of Immigration in this regard and that he was in no position to entertain any requests from the MP. Mr. Thirumavalavan said that he requested to speak to the Controller-General, but this could not be arranged at that hour.
He said that in the register maintained at the CIO's office, his name figured in a no-entry list and had some comments which read: ‘Do not allow to enter; send back to India.'
22/02/11 R.K. Radhakrishnan/The Hindu

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Centre to decide airport in Nalanda: Nitish

Patna: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today said though the state government had asked the authorities to look for acquiring land in Nalanda district, it was for Centre to take a decision on the issue. "We have asked the authorities concerned to look for acquiring land in Nalanda Pawapuri area for setting up a new airport there. But it is for the civil aviation ministry and Airports Authority of India to take a final view on the issue," Kumar told reporters on the sidelines of his janata darbar programme. Chief minister said the state government had earlier suggested to further expand the airport in Patna towards Phulwari Sharif site but the proposal was not accepted by Centre.
21/02/11 PTI/IBN

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Airport: Ball in Centre, AAI court

Patna: It has still not been decided where Patna's Jayaprakash Narayan International Airport will finally be shifted. The final decision will be taken by the ministry of civil aviation and the Airport Authority of India (AAI), and the agencies are weighing options to shift the airport to either Nalanda or Pawapuri.
Chief minister Nitish Kumar on Monday said the central agencies should spell out what they want to do. "They have developed cold feet on the expansion plan of the present airport. We had mooted idea to change alignment of the airport to expand the runway on Phulwari side, for which a survey was conducted. It was also decided to shift some places and the proposal was found to be feasible, but the civil aviation ministry rejected it," said Nitish.
The CM recently met the civil aviation secretary and the joint team of civil aviation and AAI which surveyed Bihta and Nalanda to select a place. The team found that Bihta, which also serves as an Air force field, was not suitable as a number of villages were likely to be affected.
21/02/11 Faizan Ahmad/Times of India

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Jet Airways Introduces New Flights To Bhubaneshwar And Raipur

Jet Airways, India’s premier international airline, will enhance network connectivity to/from the cities of Bhubaneshwar and Raipur with the introduction of a daily Boeing 737 service on the Bengaluru-Bhubaneshwar-Raipur sectors, effective March 1, 2011.
Bhubaneshwar, the ‘city of temples’ and the capital of Orissa, will now be linked with Delhi and Hyderabad through a direct daily morning return service with effect from March 27, 2011.
Jet Airways will also introduce daily direct services to Delhi from Raipur also effective March 1, 2011, complementing the daily JetLite service currently operating on this sector.
21/02/11 Logistics Week

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Chennai airport expansion: Presence of VOR overlooked

Chennai: It seems the Airports Authority of India forgot that the linkway they are constructing at the Chennai Airport to join the main and secondary runway will result in displacement of a very high frequency omni range (VOR) equipment, an essential requirement for any airport from the pilot’s perspective to identify his destination.
Sources at the airport said the officials had apparently ignored the presence of VOR in close proximity to the new linkway 1 and the parallel taxiway to main runway that have been constructed.
“Owing to its proximity to the linkway it has to be demolished as the aircraft wings will bump into it. AAI apparently didn’t foresee this during the expansion stage. It seems to be a planning error. Subsequently they also realised that there is no other convenient location except for near the hangars which couldn’t be demolished. Hence they are now having to make two VORs- one for each runway. It is a lot of work because new procedures have to be put in place and well tested before it is commissioned,” an ATC source said.
A VOR is basically a navigational instrument that gives out radials to the pilot for setting his course to come into his destination airport.
“The VOR will be unsteady if it has any obstruction in its path. A VOR, apart from a homing device, is a primary facility for an instrument approach when a pilot practises automated landing instead of manually controlling or visual flying. In the absence of a VOR, IFR (Instrument Flight Rules) landing cannot be done at all. Moreover, in absence of VOR and instrument landing system equipment, visibility requirements will become very poor leading to more diversions. Night operations are also not possible,” retired ATC official and aviation expert Krishnan said.
20/02/11 Mamta Todi/ExpressBuzz

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Rahat fined Rs 15 lakh

New Delhi: Pakistani singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan has been slapped a fine of Rs 15 lakh for trying to board a flight with excess and undeclared foreign currency.
The customs department has also asked his manager Maroof to pay the same amount.
The duo is expected to pay up and leave India tonight.
Khan and his 16-member troupe were arrested by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence on February 13 at the Indira Gandhi International Airport. He was carrying undeclared cash worth $1,24,000 (Rs 55 lakh) in cash and two demand drafts while trying to board a flight to Lahore via Dubai. The maximum permissible amount a traveller can carry abroad is $5,000 in cash and $5000 more in other instruments, like traveller’s cheques — this amount would come to around Rs 4.5 lakh. Not declaring any excess amount is an offence.
20/02/11 The Telegraph

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Clumsy software holds up airport cargo

Chennai: A few deficiencies in a new software system and shortage of skilled manpower are said to be creating chaos at the Chennai air cargo hub. After drivers of hundreds of trailers and container lorries were forced to wait outside the cargo complex for several hours from Thursday night, about 120 of them declared a strike on Friday. Sources said the strike would continue on Monday until the Airports Authority of India kept its promise of meeting the demands raised by traders on Saturday.
"Air cargo export operations at the airport are at a standstill. The AAI at a meeting with traders promised to facilitate free cargo movement from 9 am on GST road. It was also decided to deploy additional staff to receive consignments. We will withdraw the strike only if the promises are kept," Aircargo Agents Association of India (southern region) chairman N Sivasubramaniam said.
The problem began on Tuesday night when one of the two customs officials at the counter wasn't present. "It caused a delay in clearing consignment documents for export. It's impossible for a single person to handle more than 700 cargo documents," said an official. He also pointed to some difficulties in the new customs system that goes strictly by the procedure for amendments on consignment tags. "Making subsequent amendments is difficult and we are forced to open many parcels for clarification, delaying the process," he added.
Traders said only two officials were present at a counter handling up to 1,000 bills daily.
20/02/11 Times of India

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IndiGo Pilot grounded for 'rough landing'

New Delhi: The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has taken an IndiGo Airlines pilot off duty after its investigation found that she had landed the plane on its fragile nose wheel on several occasions.
The DGCA, which was surprised to find the wrong landing many times, has told the carrier to send the pilot — Captain Parminder Kaur Gulati — for a correctional training for landing the plane on the front wheel and not the rear ones which is normal.
Sources at the DGCA told Deccan Herald that the regulator began an inquiry after the January 11 incident of “rough landing” as reported by Capt Gulati after touchdown at the Goa airport.The latest dangerous incident of landing not on the rear but the nose wheel was an erroneous manoeuvre that could have even led to the aircraft disintegrating and catching fire.The Delhi-Goa IndiGo flight was carrying over 100 passengers who experienced the heavy landing with a “thud”. After the bumpy touchdown, the woman pilot in command merely reported the incident as “rough landing”.
The preliminary inquiry revealed that Capt Gulati landed the aircraft at an angle indicating that the nose wheel may have touched the tarmac first.
15/02/11 Deccan Herald

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Rahat, manager slapped with Fema

New Delhi: Pakistani singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and his manager were on Saturday charged under FEMA and violation of the Customs Act by the Directortate of Revenue Intelligence.
Sources said that this could pave the way for an early resolution of the case against the singer and his manager and they can walk free after paying a heavy redemption penalty and fine to be decided by the adjudicating authority. But investigating agencies are likely to pursue the domestic leads that have emerged in the case.
The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) had detained Rahat and his entire 16-member troupe, including his manager Maroof, from the Indira Gandhi International Airport on February 13 for allegedly carrying undeclared cash worth Rs 60 lakh in foreign currency. The troupe was on its way to Lahore via Dubai.
Government sources said the case has now been handed over for adjudication to the Commissioner Customs (Airports).
The sources said under the adjudication process a huge penalty could be levied.
19/02/11 Times of India

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Part of Chennai's second runway to open soon

Chennai: The airport will soon open a portion of the secondary runway, which has remained closed for more than a year, as construction work has been completed.
A stretch of 2,085 metres, which formed the entire stretch of the initial runway will be opened for take-off of smaller aircraft, a meeting of the coordination panel of Chennai airport decided on Friday.
"We are awaiting the approval of Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), and the message has been conveyed to airline operators," said airport director Hareendranath. The airport had constructed a bridge across the Adyar river to extend the runway by 1,400 metres. The security analysis of this strech is in progress, the airport director added.
The opening of the earlier portion of the runway will help transfer movement of small aircraft including ATRs that operate short-haul flights. The secondary runway was closed in December 2009 to align the runway level with the portion of the proposed extension across the river.
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) had decided to speed up the extension of runway considering the safety of aircraft operations which had been limited to a single runway of 3,658 metres.
19/02/11 Times of India

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Amritsar-Toronto flight from Sunday

Amritsar: Almost four months after the withdrawal of Air India’s Amritsar-London-Toronto flight, the new flight from the holy city to Toronto is all set for an overwhelming start from Sunday.
The flight has opened to choc-o-bloc response from the passengers not only for the inaugural day but for the entire next month. Though Air India officials could not be contacted despite repeated attempts, Rajeev Suri, owner of a leading travel agency here, said the flight has been fully booked till March 22.
Punjab NRI Sabha Patron Jaswinder Singh Dhaliwal hailed the resumption of flight from Amritsar to Toronto, stating that though UK bound Punjabis would be disappointed, but it would bring about much-needed respite for a huge Sikh population in Canada. “The abrupt withdrawal of immensely successful Amritsar-London-Toronto flight on October 31 last year came as a rude shock for many. Thereafter the passengers used to have a harrowing time first boarding a flight from the holy city to New Delhi and changing it there for onward journey,” he said. However, he felt that now at least the Diaspora in Canada would be saved from harassment they had to face while boarding a connecting flight from Delhi.
18/02/11 GlobalSikhNews

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Plea to run Lanka flights to Vizag

Visakhapatnam: Air Travellers Association of India (ATAI) has asked the Sri Lankan deputy high commissioner to south India, Mr Vadivel Krishnamurthy, to organise a road show on Buddhism in association with AP Tourism Development Corporation at a venue central and accessible to Buddhist monks, business persons, industrialists, government officials and public in June or July this year.
The ATAI president, Mr D. Varada Reddy, asked the deputy high commissioner to organise another road sh-ow on Sri Lanka in Visakhapatnam and persuade Sri Lankan Airlines to operate a bi-weekly flight on the Colombo-Visakhapatnam sector to cater to the
Buddhist pilgrims who can visit shrines and to the benefit of those employed in Brandix India Apparel City and to the Special Economic Zone. Mr Reddy told the deputy high commissioner that over seven lakh air passengers from this region use Vizag airport, the only one in this region.
18/02/11 Deccan Chronicle

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Two held at airport for hiding cash in TV set

Customs officials recovered 50,000 Hong Kong Dollars and Thailand Baht worth 1.8 lakh from a TV set the duo had brought in from Bangkok.
Following the dramatic detainment of Pakistani singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and his troupe at the Delhi airport on Sunday, airport authorities across the country have stepped up efforts to check smuggling of foreign currency.
Pakistani singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan was detained for carrying undisclosed $1.24 lakh
Khan’s troupe was allegedly caught with undeclared currency to the tune of $1.24 lakh along with Pakistani and Indian currency.
Khan and his entourage were about to board an Emirates flight to Karachi via Dubai when the currency was found in Khan’s checked-in luggage and hand baggage.
Customs sources said both men frequently travelled to Bangkok and brought back electronic items. Officials don’t rule out the duo’s involvement in an organised crime network.
19/02/11 Mumbai Mirror

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AAI plans 'aviation educational tours' for students at Nagpur airport

Nagpur: In a bid to create awareness about aviation activities, encourage tourism and provide people, especially school and college students, a good view of the operational area of the Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) and the Mihan India Private Limited (MIPL), has plans to start aviation education tours at the city airport.
On February 18, 1911, the first commercial plane flew in India between Allahabad and Naini carrying mails. "To commemorate this milestone, the year 2011-12 is being celebrated as the Civil Aviation Centenary Year and we have decided to run the aviation education tour programme for students and visitors (other than passengers) at city airport," airport director airport director Ashok Kumar Verma said on Friday.
Under the plan, students and people other than passengers will be given entry in viewers' gallery and in operational area of airport (on selected days) at nominal rates. The MIPL has already proposed to reduce the parking charges for vehicles so that more users can make use of parking facilities and also to reduce the viewers' gallery rates at city airport.
19/02/11 Sachin Dravekar/Times of India

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Malaysia flight to stay

Calcutta: Air Asia has decided not to stop its thrice-a-week Calcutta-Kuala Lumpur flight “because of popular demand”.
On Thursday, Metro had reported that the low-cost international airline would not fly to the Malaysian capital after March 26 despite clocking a decent passenger count.
The report had prompted appeals to change the decision, led by Malaysia’s honorary consul in Calcutta.
Sanjay Budhia reminded Air Asia CEO Tony Fernandez about Calcutta being “the focal point” of the east and the Northeast.
“Calcutta is the hub/focal point for entire north-eastern region, comprising Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Nagaland, Mizoram, Tripura, Arunachal and Sikkim, plus adjoining states like Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa and also neighbouring countries like Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal….
“Any new venture initially takes a little time to get off the ground and be self-supporting. Therefore, I would request you very sincerely to reconsider your decision to discontinue the direct flight from Calcutta to Kuala Lumpur,” he wrote.
19/02/11 Sanjay Mandal/The Telegraph

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AAI to raise Rs 300 cr for airports modernisation

Mumbai: The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has invited bids to raise funds to the tune of Rs 300 crore from the bond market to meet its capital expenditure requirements, its officials said today.
“Bids have been issued to institutional investors. We are raising Rs 300 crore through private placement. The proceeds will be used to meet our capex requirement,” the officials, requesting anonymity, said.
AAI has already approached primary dealers to invest in the bonds which are for a five-year period.
With airlines ordering more aircraft, the capacity of airports has to be enhanced at a fast pace, they said, adding that the country needed to at least double the airport and runway capacities to support the major fleet expansion plans announced by the airlines.
Air traffic would almost double in the next few years and “we have to upgrade our newly constructed airports as well as the older ones to keep pace with the demand”, the officials said, adding that the air traffic demand would remain strong during the coming decade.
17/02/11 PTI/Business Line

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2 MPs protest at Delhi airport after missing their flight

New Delhi: Two JD(U) MPs sat on a dharna at Terminal 3 of IGI Airport in New Delhi after the aircraft in which they were to fly to Patna took off without taking them.
The MPs, Sushil Kumar Singh and Kaushalendra Singh, sat on the dharna after Air India flight IC-415 flew to Patna without taking them on board, airport sources said.
Though they checked in at the airline counter and took their boarding passes, they did not turn up at the boarding gate despite repeated announcements calling out to them, the sources said.The doors of the plane were closed ten minutes before the scheduled departure time and the airline decided to leave the duo behind, they said.
However, as there were no scheduled flights for Patna on Thursday, the national carrier accommodated them in a flight scheduled for Friday.
18/02/11 Press Trust of India/NDTV.com

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Aviation ministry takes on airport regulator

New Delhi: The civil aviation ministry has waded into battle with the airport regulator, seemingly angered by the watchdog body having sought and received the attorney general’s endorsement of its independence.
The aviation ministry has now asked the law ministry whether its views are binding on the Airport Economic Regulatory Authority, or Aera, according to two aviation ministry officials, who declined to be named. Aera, which was set up in 2009, is drafting the tariff structure for the country’s high-traffic airports, a process that could be held up by the row.
The regulator had sought the opinion of the attorney general in November on whether it would have to follow the aviation ministry’s directions. The attorney general had said that being an independent regulator Aera didn’t need to do so.
Aera is drawing up the tariff structure at a dozen of the country’s key airports, including Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chennai and Kolkata, which will see a total $7 billion (Rs31,780 crore) of investment until 2012.
18/02/11 Tarun Shukla/Live Mint

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Jet Airways' Chennai-bound plane suffers tyre-burst while taxiing

Kochi: A tyre of a Jet Airways plane burst today as the pilot aborted take-off suspecting problem with the breaks while taxiing to fly to Chennai.
None of the 48 passengers and four crew members on board was injured in the incident involving the airline's Cochin-Chennai flight 9W 2730, airport sources said.
As the aircraft was taxiing for take-off at around 1230 hours, the pilot got an indication of "hot brakes" and aborted take-off. This led to a rear tyre being deflated and caused smoke to come out due to the resultant friction.
The passengers were deplaned after the incident and the runway remained closed for about 30 minutes till the aircraft was hauled to the parking bay, the sources said.
An airline spokesperson said that as per standard operating procedure and in the interest of safety, the Captain ordered "precautionary evacuation" of passengers.
17/02/11 Indian Express

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Recovery of cartridges from Min''s baggage; BJP stages walk out

Jaipur: Opposition BJP today staged a walk out from Rajasthan Assembly demanding resignation of Home Minister Shanti Kumar Dhariwal following recovery of cartridges from his baggage at IGI airport in New Delhi last month.
Former Home Minister and BJP legislator Gulabchand Kataria raised the issue in the House blaming Dhariwal of misusing his position and blotting the state''s image by trying to carry the cartridges illegally.
He said, "Dhariwal violated security norms and was let off by the security authority there which raises question mark even on the CISF officials who were satisfied by the clarification of Dhariwal as a minister."
Responding to the allegation, Dhariwal informed the House that the cartridges were recovered in his baggage during the security check and it all was by mistake, unknowingly, and he was ready to face any enquiry or criminal case if it is found to be an intentional act.
Dhariwal also said that he was allowed to board the same flight he was scheduled to take, after he gave the CISF in written that he and his son have valid arms license and he will produce the relevant documents on reaching Jaipur.
"I was allowed to board the flight after a written assurance that I will be submitting the documents on reaching Jaipur," he said.
17/02/11 PTI/MSN.com

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Fog envelops Delhi, flights disrupted

New Delhi: Thick fog enveloped the capital Thursday morning, delaying scores of flights and leading to several being cancelled due to poor visibility conditions at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport.
The minimum temperature recorded at 9.8 degrees Celsius, dipped one degree below the normal for this time of the season.
‘About 10 flights were diverted due to foggy conditions in the morning,’ an airport official told IANS.
The visibility was below 125 metres due to which many flights were delayed and several cancelled.
Passengers had a harrowing time, with many being made to board flights and wait for hours. A Jet pilot told passengers that at least 60 flights had queued up at the runway.
According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the skies will be clear later in the day and there is no possibility of rain.
17/02/11 IANS/Calcutta Tube

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Hyderabad, Delhi, Mumbai airports on a different plane

Bangalore: It’s official now. India’s swanky airports have joined the league of top airports in the world.
Three of them—Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA), Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport and Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA)—have figured in the latest Airport Service Quality (ASQ) rankings of the Airports Council International (ACI) at first, second and fourth position respectively in different categories.
In the 2010 survey of the global airport rating agency, Indian airports have outshined yesteryear’s leading airports like Heathrow, JFK and others in different airport categories.
Hyderabad’s RGIA, which was ranked in the top five airports worldwide in 2009, retained its number one position for the second year in the 5-15 million passenger category. It beat competition from Japan’s Nagoya airport, Cancun, Indianapolis and Austin airports to secure the top spot.
17/02/11 Supriya Ghorpade/Daily News & Analysis

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Macau Airport eyes India, Australia’s markets

Macau International Airport Company (CAM) wants to take advantage of big markets like India and Australia, to bring more tourists to the SAR this year, said the company’s executive director, Sunning Liu yesterday. Nevertheless, mainland China will maintain its position as Macau’s major market, as local authorities want to add new routes and increase the frequency of some flights to the Mainland.
“The influx of Chinese passengers keeps rising. [Therefore,] routes to the Mainland, in particular to the northern part [of the country], will be our main target this year,” Liu stressed.
“We’ll also target India and Australia, since these markets are potential medium long haul routes,” she added.
In addition, CAM plans to increase existing routes, especially to Eastern China, as it vows to improve the customer service.
Yesterday, the company announced the final numbers of the Macau International Airport operation in 2010.
17/02/11 Macau Daily Times

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Jet Airways and SpiceJet eye Bangalore-Mysore sector

Bangalore: The Mysore airport runway, where only one flight lands and takes off in a day, may witness more activity in the near future.
According to the Airport Authority of India (AAI), two commercial airlines have shown interest in starting operations in addition to Kingfisher airlines which operates on the Bangalore-Mysore sector five days a week.
AAI DGM Rajiv Gupta, who is in charge of the airport, said Jet Airways and SpiceJet had shown interest in starting services from Mysore. Officials from the two commercial airlines visited the airport to inspect the facilities.
“They had visited the airport a few months back. They are carrying out route surveys and other planning activities to find if it is feasible to start commercial flight operations,” said Gupta. The existing infrastructure at the airport is sufficient for these airlines to immediately start operations. And there is tremendous potential for more airlines to operate from Mysore which attracts scores of tourists throughout the year, especially during the Dasara festivities.
17/02/11 Daily News & Analysis

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AAI invites bids to raise Rs. 300 crore via bonds

Mumbai: Airports Authority of India (AAI) has invited bids from investors to raise Rs. 300 crore through five-year bonds, according to a quotation invitation seen by Reuters.
Investors will have to submit bids on the bond coupon by 3pm, 17 February and the cut-off rate and allotment will be made on 18 February at 4:00pm, according to the document.
17/02/11 Reuters/Live Mint

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GMR-led Hyderabad and Delhi airports ranked amongst top airports of the world:ACI

Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA), and Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) both operated by the GMR Group led consortia, have been ranked 1st and the 4th best airports in the world in their respective categories in the latest ASQ rankings of the Airports Council International (ACI).
While Hyderabad has retained its number one crown for the second year in a row, IGIA’s ranking is in the group of 25-40 mppa (Million Passengers Per Annum). This niche league features the world’s Best Airports like Incheon-Seoul, Changi-Singapore, and Shanghai Pudong-China. The awards will be formally presented on April 7th, 2011 during the ACI conference at the ACI Asia Pacific Regional Conference and Exhibition to be held in New Delhi, India. 153 airports across the globe, including 6 Indian airports, participated in the ASQ survey in 2010.
Under the terms of the concessions agreement with the Airports Authority of India, the GMR-led IGIA was mandated to achieve a score of 3.75 on the completion of stage II of the OMDA agreement, i.e. after operationalization of Terminal 3 (ASQ ratings are measured on a scale of 1 to 5 points). Against this, IGIA has been effectively able to achieve the ratings of 4.49. With this year’s results, DIAL’s worldwide ranking has now improved to 12th rank from the last year’s rank of 32nd. It is now amongst the top 10 Airports in the Asia-Pacific Region. In 2007 IGIA’s ASQ rating was 3.02 points, which went up to 3.15 points in 2008. It further rose to 4.16 points for the year 2009 after the inauguration of Terminal 1 D and subsequently has been rising above 4.5 with the opening of new Terminal-3. IGI Airport, Delhi was also rated as Asia-Pacific Region’s ‘Most Improved Airport’ last year.
28/02/11 India Infoline

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GMR gets INR 520 crore from IIFCL for Delhi airport

GMR Infrastructure has raised around INR 520 crore of debt from India Infrastructure Finance Co Ltd for modernising Delhi Intetrnational Airport. Sources said the company, based in this city, raised a total of around INR 2,600 crore to fund the modernisation plan, including the debt from IIFCL.
Delhi International Airport Ltd is a joint venture consortium of the GMR Group, with majority holding of 54%, Airports Authority of India with 26% and Frankfurt airport operator Frafort AG and Eraman Malaysia with 10 per cent each. While GMR is the lead member of the consortium, Fraport AG is the airport operator in this project.
The project, being developed under a public-private partnership model, has an initial concession period of 30 years, extendable by another 30 years. Since bagging the contract in 2006, DIAL has upgraded the existing terminal, along with commissioning of a new runway in 2008.
17/02/11 Steel Guru.com

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TSA agent admits to stealing from Indian passengers during security checks

A Transportation Security Administration officer pleaded guilty to stealing thousands of dollars in cash and other valuables from unsuspecting travelers, mostly non-English speakers, during security screenings at Newark airport.
Michael Arato, 41, also admitted on Monday to taking kickbacks from a subordinate officer, who stole between $10,000 and $30,000 over the course of a year while Arato agreed to look the other way.
The crooked TSA supervisor was busted last fall after the subordinate, who was not named, worked with authorities to videotape him taking his cut during a three-week period, from Sept. 13 to Oct. 5, authorities said.
Arato also admitted stealing from passengers at his own checkpoint at Newark airport's Terminal B.
According to the original complaint, authorities became suspicious after receiving several complaints from passengers on Air India's daily nonstop flight to India that money and valuables from their carry-on bags had gone missing after TSA employees at Arato's checkpoint had searched them by hand.
The victims were mostly women of Indian decent who did not speak English, the complaint said.
Prosecutors said the two agents often targeted foreigners and subjected them to additional screening, during which time they would pocket cash found in their carry-on bags.
According to prosecutor Paul Fishman, the supervisor pocketed between $400 and $700 from passengers on a given shift. He also accepted about $3,100 in bribes during the three-week period he was being observed.
"Arato literally made a game of stealing hundreds of dollars a day from individuals standing in the security lane," Fishman said in a statement after Arato was busted. "That he targeted them based on their inability to speak English is especially offensive."
15/02/11 Philip Caulfield/NY Daily News.com

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Monkey disrupts a flight at Ahmedabad airport

Ahmedabad: On Monday morning once again a monkey was spotted at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport. The animal came in the way of an aircraft which was taking off and the airport got disrupted for almost an hour.
"At 10 am there was panic on the runway. The air traffic controllers (ATC) saw the monkey which was roving at the runway number 3. The aircraft was taking off that time and the pilot had to remain still for almost 30 minutes. Finally, he was instructed to go around the monkey," said an airport official.
According to officials, they took the safety measures to control the situation. But for nearly an hour air services got disrupted. It is to be noted that it's not a rare incident at the airport.
In fact, dogs, snakes, rats, birds and many other creatures have given the airport the look of an exotic zoo!
15/092/11 Satish Jha/Daily News & Analysis

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Man arrested at the airport

New Delhi: A 27-year-old man was arrested at the IGI airport on Tuesday after a kurki and a knife were found in his bag. Vivek Kaul, a resident of sector 7, Dwarka, was arrested by CISF under the Arms Act and later handed-over to the Delhi Police for questioning.
According to sources, Kaul is mentally disturbed. "He said that he had come to the airport to provide protection to a woman, a US national, who was coming from Singapore with money to invest in India. He also claimed that he had spoken to the woman,'' said a police officer.
16/02/11 Times of India

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Defence ministry refuses to give land for Shillong airport

Shillong: The defence ministry has rejected a request to part with a few acres of land for upgradation of the airport near Shillong, but Meghalaya government today said it would not affect its expansion plans.
The Airport Authority of India had proposed to set up the cargo facility in the 35 acre of defence land located in front of the Umroi Airport, but the defence ministry has refused to part with the land, official sources said.
“I have received a letter from the union minister for defence AK Antony citing his department’s inability to part with the land,” Vincent Pala, MP from Shillong, said.
However, state transport minister A T Mondal told today PTI that it would not affect the expansion plans.
“The proposed expansion of the runway does not fall on defence land. Other facilities can be adjusted on the land acquired from locals as they are willing to give their plots,” Mondal said.
15/02/11 PTI/Daily News & Analysis

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Pakistan thanks India for releasing Rahat Ali Khan

New Delhi: Pakistan Interior Minister Rehman Malik called up Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram on Tuesday and thanked him for his assistance in the release of noted qawwali singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan detained at the Delhi airport for allegedly carrying a huge quantity of cash.
Mr. Malik assured Mr. Chidambaram of the singer's “full cooperation in the matter, in accordance with the law of the land,'' said a press note from the Pakistan High Commission.
India has extended Mr. Khan's visa to enable investigation into the charge of his having a large amount of money.
The DRI is probing the source of foreign exchange worth Rs. 60 lakh allegedly recovered from Mr. Khan and two others — Maroof, a Pakistani, who is said to be the singer's manager, and Chitresh Shrivastava, an Indian, said to be part owner of an event management company. The premises of Eyeline Telefilm and Events, owned by Mr. Shrivastava's family, has also been searched.
The three were detained on Sunday while Mr. Khan and his troupe were going to board a flight to Dubai from where they had planned to travel home to Lahore.
16/02/11 Sandeep Dikshit/The Hindu

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Airports to light up for 100 years of aviation

Mangalore: Airports across India will have a special glow on them on February 18. They will be tastefully illuminated to mark the completion of 100 years of Indian civil aviation on that day and also mark the commencement of Civil Aviation Centenary Year starting from February 18 and ending the same date in 2012. This occasion will be doubly sweet for Mangalore airport which is in the alacrity of its 60th year celebration.
It was on February 18, 1911, that the first commercial plane flew in India between Allahabad and Naini. The first commercial international flight, connecting Delhi to Karachi and beyond took place in 1912 and was operated by the erstwhile Imperial Airways. Since then, aviation in India has grown in strength and is currently ninth largest civil aviation market in the world with projections of the country being the top three players in the sector by 2020.
M R Vasudeva, director, Mangalore Airport, said special care will be taken to illuminate the airport tastefully on that day. For us, the occasion is all the more special given that various stakeholders such as the Kanara Chamber of Commerce and Industry and other well-wishers are arranging for a function to commemorate the occasion, he says. The first flight, a Dakota, flew in to Mangalore in 1951 carrying then PM Jawaharlal Nehru.
15/02/11 Times of India

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GMR gets Rs 520 cr from IIFCL for Delhi airport

Bangalore: GMR Infrastructure has raised around Rs 520 crore of debt from India Infrastructure Finance Co Ltd (IIFCL) for modernising Delhi Intetrnational Airport. Sources said the company, based in this city, raised a total of around Rs 2,600 crore to fund the modernisation plan, including the debt from IIFCL.
Queries to GMR remained unanswered. It has a total debt of Rs 9,283 crore for the airport arm, of the total net debt of Rs 15,300 crore.
Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) is a joint venture consortium of the GMR Group, with majority holding of 54 per cent, Airports Authority of India with 26 per cent, and Frankfurt airport operator Frafort AG and Eraman Malaysia with 10 per cent each. While GMR is the lead member of the consortium, Fraport AG is the airport operator in this project. The project, being developed under a public-private partnership model, has an initial concession period of 30 years, extendable by another 30 years.
16/02/11 Debasis Mohapatra/Business Standard

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Spice Jet to operate from M'lore

Mangalore: Domestic passengers flying out from Mangalore airport will be spoilt for choice with Spice Jet expected to make their foray to this coastal city by starting operations from Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore from May. At present, Jet Airways, Kingfisher and Air India and its subsidiaries operate their services to Mangalore mainly from Bangalore and Mumbai, and AI Express providing international connectivity to destinations in the Middle East. Hinting at the launch of services by Spice Jet at a meet the press organized by Dakshina Kannada District Journalists Association here on Tuesday, M R Vasudeva, director, Mangalore airport said, Spice Jet authorities approached me with preliminary inquiries about the facilities available at the airport and have evinced interest to start operations to this city soon. Spice Jet is likely to operate the A320 class of aircraft to this city, he said.
The city's direct connectivity to national capital Delhi stopped some time back due to shortage of aircraft too could resume around the same period, Vasudeva said.
15/02/11 Times of India

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Private airport operators appeal against Aera over land valuation

New Delhi: Private airport operators have appealed against a regulatory decision that directs them to exclude the value of land while calculating tariffs, which could lower costs for passengers and carriers.
GMR Infrastructure Ltd, which runs the Hyderabad and New Delhi airports, GVK Power and Infrastructure Ltd, which runs the Mumbai and Bangalore airports, and Cochin International Airport Ltd (Cial), had filed an appeal against the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority (Aera) order that they say will reduce returns on their investments, said three officials of the operators.
“We have applied for relief. The Aera Act clearly says they have to regulate aeronautical revenue and not non-aeronautical revenue,” said a Cial official, who declined to be named as the matter is in court.
A GVK spokesman said its two airport firms Mumbai International Airport Pvt. Ltd and Bangalore International Airport Pvt. Ltd have separately appealed against the decision. A GMR official said his company, too, had appealed against the decision. He spoke on condition of anonymity.
15/02/11 Tarun Shukla/Live Mint

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Flights to and from Northeast fumble in blind zone

Flights between Calcutta and the Northeast are not only among the shortest but also short on safety, passing through stretches of airspace where pilots are caught between two air traffic control towers that aren’t even on talking terms.
“Around 5,000 people board flights between the city and various destinations of the Northeast every day. unaware that luck and piloting skills are their only insurance along stretches of Bangladesh and Indian airspace where communication methods are primitive and radar surveillance is non-existent,” said a senior representative of a private airline.
Danger No. 1 is apparently the lack of communication between the Calcutta and Dhaka control rooms despite all flights to the Northeast flying over Bangladesh airspace.
Even after a pilot negotiates that stretch safely, he or she can’t afford to relax.
“Apart from Guwahati, no other airport in the Northeast has radar surveillance. So voice communication with the ATC is the only lifeline available to pilots,” the airline official said.
With Guwahati, voice communication by VHF (very high frequency) equipment is often a problem because of signal disruption caused by the hilly terrain.
“When that happens, a pilot needs to contact Agartala ATC to convey a message to us, which in this day and age is ridiculous. We have been requesting Delhi to install a radar in Agartala for the last eight years but nobody’s listening,” said an official at Borjhar airport in Guwahati.
Not for nothing does a veteran like Capt. Sarvesh Gupta of Jet Airways find flying to and from the Northeast “stressful”.
15/02/11 The Telegraph

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Govt may introduce full-body scanner at airports

New Delhi: Full-body scanner at airports is likely to be introduced in India subject to government's approval. This along with a slew of measures to beef up security at airports are now being studied by a committee set up by the Civil Aviation Ministry.
The proposals would be put forth before the Union Home Ministry after which the Cabinet Committee on Security would take a final decision. Restructuring of the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) is among the entire gamut of activities relating to aviation security which would come up for review.
Disclosing this while inaugurating a two-day Regional Aviation Security Conference here, Civil Aviation Minister Vayalar Ravi said: “The need to introduce this technology is being felt in India. Some experimentation is being carried out in Delhi”.
Stressing caution, Ravi said: “Several issues, including medical and privacy, have to be sorted out. There are also questions relating to efficacy and efficiency of these equipment. We will have to be careful before taking any decision. All aspects have to be carefully considered,” he said, adding that “nothing has been finalised so far.”
In this context, the US government is bringing a law to forbid the posting of an airline passenger's full-body body scanner image on the internet.
14/02/11 Deccan Herald

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CM urges Centre to build grade separators at Dabolim airport

Vasco: To tackle the serious problem of traffic congestion in front of the Dabolim airport, chief minister Digambar Kamat has written to Union minister for road transport and highwaysC P Joshi asking him to explore the possibility of building two grade separators at the airport.
According to the chief minister's letter, the state government has been actively pursuing the issue of constructing grade separators as a solution to traffic congestion at the intersection of the airport road and NH 17-B. Sources, however, said, "Initially a flyover was considered to be a good option. But, after a study was conducted by a consultant, they are now opting for grade separators.''
At a recent meeting presided over by the chief secretary, a plan was suggested by the AAI involving the construction of two grade separators in the form of two loops. Accordingly, these details were discussed with the project director of the Union minister for road transport and highwaysand a copy of the same has been submitted to him.
15/02/11 Times of India

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It is Celebration Time for Mangalore Airport

60 years ago on December 21, 1951 with the arrival of Pt Jawaharlal Nehru, India’s first Prime Minister, in Mangalore, the Bajpe Aerodrome, which has now graduated to become Mangalore International Airport, was commissioned. The airport has come a long way since then and is now celebrating its diamond jubilee this year, which is no doubt a moment of great pride for all Mangaloreans. The airport has been instrumental in facilitating the economic development of this port city. The airport which has been operating international flights from 2006 onwards has been awaiting the tag of international airport status, which may take some more time to get materialized.
The length of the second runway at Mangalore airport is 8038 feet whereas the availability of a 9000 feet runway is a pre-requisite to upgrade the status of the airport. After inaugurating the new terminal Praful Patel had announced extension of the runway and after the gruesome air crash tragedy of May last year, it was reassured that the runway would be extended and it would also take into account the required spillover area in case of emergency. The paper work in this regard is under process. Another distinctive feature of Mangalore airport is that it is one among the three airports in the country to have table top runways, the other two being Kozhikode and Lengpui in Aizwal, Mizoram.
15/02/11 Florine Roche/Daijiworld.com

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Rahat Fateh Ali Khan stopped at IGI airport with cash in baggage

New Delhi: Acclaimed Pakistani sufi singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan was detained on Sunday at Terminal 3 of the Indira Gandhi International Airport by officials of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence for allegedly carrying undeclared currency to the tune of 1.24 lakh US dollars, along with Pakistani and Indian currency, sources told Newsline.
Khan (37) was detained at the airport around 3.45 pm. Till the time of filing of the report, he was with DRI officials. Around 11 pm, DRI was going to begin questioning Khan and his entourage of 14 persons, officials said.
Khan was to board an Emirates flight to Karachi via Dubai (EK 517), scheduled to take off around 4 pm, when the currency was found in his baggage. Khan was here to perform at an Indo-Pakistan peace initiative.
“The questioning will go on for another five hours, at least. All the 15 are under detention. A decision on their arrest has not been taken,” a source said.
As per norms, a foreign national cannot carry more than $ 5,000 in cash and $ 5,000 in other instruments — a greater amount has to be declared to the Customs Department. A person can take out of the country an amount equivalent to what he had declared on entering.
14/02/11 Geeta Gupta/Indian Express

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Airport cuffs on singer caught with cash

New Delhi: Pakistani singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan was tonight arrested at the Indira Gandhi International Airport here for allegedly carrying undeclared foreign currency several times the permissible limit.
“He has been placed under arrest. He was carrying $1.24 lakh in foreign currency and two demand drafts of $10,000 and $8,646. He did not declare it to the immigration authorities,” said an official of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) who along with customs authorities had earlier detained the singer.
A foreign national can carry up to $5,000 in cash and $5,000 in other instruments —around Rs 4.55 lakh at current exchange rates. The sum Rahat was allegedly carrying adds up to over Rs 60 lakh — over 13 times the limit allowed.
A customs official said the arrest followed Rahat’s failure to explain the source of the cash. “He was giving unsatisfactory replies on where he got the currency. He was arrested as he failed to provide all the details,” the official said. Rahat was detained around 4.15pm as he was about to board an Emirates flight to Dubai on way to Karachi.
The 37-year-old is the nephew of the late Pakistani singing legend Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and the voice behind several Bollywood chartbusters. These include Tere Mast Mast Do Nain from last year’s top-grosser Dabangg and Ajj Din Chadeya from Love Aaj Kal, starring Saif Ali Khan and Deepika Padukone, in 2009.
13/02/11 The Telegraph

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CBI official peddles influence, arrested

Chennai: A Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) official was arrested at Chennai airport on Sunday, for having attempted to illegally facilitate the green channel passage of two passengers coming from the U.S.
K A A Salam, a DSP with CBI's anti-corruption bureau in Nagpur, was nabbed by a team of officials from Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) and the CBI, after he spoke to customs officials to allow two passengers -- Vinod Kumar, Vatsa Varadhan -- to get out of the customs hall without paying any duty. The passengers, who arrived by Jet Airways Brussels-Chennai flight, were carrying dutiable goods.
The two passengers as well as two others -- Sadique and Girish -- who accompanied Salam were arrested by the DRI and CBI teams. All the electronics goods were also seized from the duo.
"Salam tried to misuse his position to facilitate the passengers to come through green channel. He is not supposed to do this. The officer was found facilitating the passengers when a surprise check was conducted," said Ashok Kumar, zonal director, CBI.
It is not clear whether corruption is involved, but DRI and CBI suspect that some customs officials may also have been involved in this. "An investigation is on to find out the role of customs officials," he added. Officials also wondered as to why Salam should come to Chennai to facilitate the passengers.
14/02/11 Times of India

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