UFOs Are Being Spotted Regularly At The Delhi Airport, Indian Air Force Put On High Alert

Delhi: Things have been getting a little weird for the security agencies working in and around Delhi, Indra Gandhi International (IGI) Airport. They have been put on red alert after 'regular spotting' of suspicious objects flying in and around the international airport.
On Friday, the Air Traffic Controller (ATC) at the Delhi airport spotted unidentified flying objects not once, but thrice in and around the airport. While it could've very well been a drone, there isn't any video, or photographic evidence to support the claim.
In fact, an Air Vistara pilot flying in from Bhubaneswar complained of being distracted by a laser beam right before he landed on IGI's runway 29 on Wednesday night. It's a scary situation considering the number of lives at risk. The pilot apparently observed a laser beam distracting him 6 nautical miles away from the runway.
31/10/15 Rishbh Banerji/Indiatimes

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Smooth take-off into troubled skies

New Delhi/Chennai: The draft civil aviation policy received mixed response from the industry with most of the airlines describing it as 'progressive' even as lack of clarity on the fate of 5/20 norm came under criticism from some quarters.

Describing the revised draft policy released by the government as 'pretty progressive', SpiceJet CMD Ajay Singh said the focus on regional connectivity is good for domestic aviation sector.

Some procedural problems are also being addressed, he added. IndiGo president Aditya Ghosh said the policy is broadly progressive and setting of low cost airports would help bring more cost efficiency in the aviation sector.    

AirAsia India CEO and managing director Mittu Chandilya said it was surprising to see the lack of clarity and progress on 5/20 norm. On the draft policy, he said it was a good beginning as the suggestions made in the policy look positive for passengers and aviation sector as a whole.
31/10/15 PTI/News Today

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Govt opens door for private airport developers

New Delhi: In a major boost to private airport developers, the Union government has said it will continue to encourage airport development through the public-private partnership (PPP) model.

Further, the Union civil aviation ministry has decided to adopt a 'hybrid till' model to determine airport charges for future airports, a move supported by the private developers.
However, the government has made clear that the Airports Authority of India (AAI) will closely monitor the cost of airports built through the PPP route. This comes in the wake of various Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) reports, which have often asked the government to monitor the finances of the Delhi and Mumbai airport run by private companies. The Centre said AAI would monitor the finances so that the cost of airport development was under check.
By proposing 'hybrid till' model for all future airports, the civil aviation ministry has taken a different view from Airports Economic Regulatory Authority of India's stand of adopting a single-till model. The airlines, too, prefer a single-till model, as it reduces their charges and passenger fees. The civil aviation ministry is in favour of the hybrid-till model and had issued directions to use 'hybrid till' for determining tariff at Bengaluru and Hyderabad airports.
31/101/5 Business Standard

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Bird-hit Cathay Pacific freighter returns to Delhi airport

New Delhi:  A London-bound Cathay Pacific cargo aircraft from here returned to Indira Gandhi International Airport under emergency conditions due to a suspected bird hit.

"Our freighter CX37 from Delhi to London experienced a bird-hit upon take-off. Hence the captain decided to return to Delhi, and as per our protocol, all emergency procedures were followed, Cathay Pacific spokesperson Charlie Stewart-Cox said.

The Boeing 747-400 freighter remained airborne for about an hour during this period, airport sources said.
30/10/15 PTI/Times of India

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Two AI flights delayed, chaos at airport

Hyderabad: Chaos ensued at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport after two flights of Air India failed to take off on time. The Vijayawada-bound Flight AI-519, which was scheduled to depart at 3.50 p.m., developed a technical snag. As the airline was making alternative arrangement, the Hyderabad-Bengaluru flight AI-514 did not depart as per the scheduled time which was 5.05 p.m. Some of the irate passengers of the Bengaluru-bound flight picked up an argument with the airline staff after word got around that Bengaluru flight was being flown to Vijayawada. At 4.45 p.m., an alternative flight left for Vijaywada.
31/10/15 The Hindu

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Airport launches app to handhold flyers

Mumbai:  For passengers using international terminal 2 of Mumbai airport, there's now an app to remove or at least reduce the stress involved in air travel.
The app will tell you if your flight is on time. When you reach the airport, it will guide you like GPS right up to your boarding gate—a first for any Indian airport. In between, if you happen to be passing in front of your favourite store, the app will tempt you with a discount offer. If you lose track of time shopping, it will alert you and show how many minutes you have left to reach the boarding gate, how far the gate is and how long will it take to reach there.

Called Mumbai T2, the free app, compatible with Apple and Android phones, is India's first-ever indoor navigation app with augmented reality feature to guide a passenger through the terminal building. In the coming months, the app would get more ambitious as it will coordinate information from multiple sources to tell you what time to leave for the airport.
30/10/15 Times of India

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Madhyamgram role model for airport safety

Kolkata:  State home secretary Basudeb Banerjee has asked Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation and North Dum Dum, South Dum Dum and New Barrackpore municipalities to emulate Madhyamgram municipality in managing its garbage. Managing the municipal solid waste at these civic areas adjoining the airport is critical to flight safety as garbage attract birds that is hazardous to aircraft.

Speaking at the airport environment management committee meeting, Banerjee told the heads of civic bodies to take lessons from Madhyamgram that had improved its waste management. "If need be, set up compactor stations," he told the municipality chairmen and Bidhannagar mayor.

Principal chief conservator of forest and chief wildlife warden Pradeep Shukla who was also at the meeting said a comprehensive plan will be prepared in conjunction with Kolkata airport authorities to deal with the jackal menace once and for all. "There is no use trapping a couple of jackals because those that remain breed. We have to locate their habitat, corner them at one go and trap them for relocation," he said. Jackals have strayed into the tarmac in the past, forcing aircraft to abort landing.
31/10/15 Times of India

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IGIA gets customised trays

New Delhi: Very soon, passengers flying out of Delhi wouldn’t have to keep their belongings in different trays during security check. The airport operator, Delhi International Airport Ltd. (DIAL), has imported customised trays from Singapore that will have different sections to keep jackets, laptops, mobile phones, as part of its plan to shorten queues at the Terminal 1D.
During a visit to the Terminal 1D in August, which has been unable to tackle the unexpected passenger traffic, Civil Aviation Secretary R. N. Choubey reviewed a proposed decongestion action plan. After a review meeting with stakeholders, a plan along a timeline was discussed. To facilitate speedy screening of hand baggage, DIAL was asked to place orders for the specialised trays by August 31.
“The trays are similar to the ones used at Singapore’s Changi airport. The order was placed in August and we will get the trays by next week,” said a DIAL spokesperson.
31/101/5 The Hindu

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Bombay high court panel to probe building height violations near aerodrome, domestic airport

Mumbai: The Bombay high court on Friday appointed a committee to be headed by a retired HC judge to look into allegations of violations of building and height regulations around the Juhu aerodrome and the domestic airport at Santacruz.
The order by a bench of Justices V M Kanade and Shalini Phansalkar Joshi was in a PIL filed by activist Yeshwant Shenoy.
31/10/15 Times of India

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Brahma Kumaris organise Workshop at BPI Airport, Bhubaneswar

Bhubaneswar: A two days workshop was organised by Shipping Aviation Tourism (SAT) Wing, Brahma Kumaris on 29th and 30th October 2015 for the employees of AAI, CISF, Airlines and other concessionaires working at Bhubaneswar Airport in the Meeting Hall of New Integrated Office Complex of Biju Patnaik International Airport.

During the programme the training was provided on Management and Joy of Living and how to respond to the situations without losing the self balance and inner peace.
31/10/15 Odisha News Insight

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Vigilance Awareness Week observed at B.P. I. Airport Bhubaneswar

Bhubaneswar: As per the guidelines issued by Central Vigilance Commission, Vigilance Awareness Week for the year 2015 was observed from 26th to 31st October 2015 by Airports Authority of India. The theme identified for observance of VAW-2015 is “Preventive Vigilance as a tool of Good Governance.”
The programme was inaugurated on 26th October 2015 by Shri Sharad Kumar, Airport Director and some senior officials by lightening of the lamp at 11.00 a.m. in The New integrated office Complex of B.P. I. Airport. On this occasion all the employees of Bhubaneswar Airport took pledge that they shall work unstintingly for eradication of corruption in all spheres of life. They shall remain vigilant and work towards the growth and reputation of the organisation.
30/10/15 Orissa Diary.com

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Failed love affair led to CISF guard suicide at Chennai airport

Chennai: A love affair and forced engagement to another girl are said to be reasons for CISF guard Pulak Rajbongshi, 27, pulling the trigger on himself at the city airport on Thursday after noon.

Police said that according to his colleagues Pulak who returned from his native place in Assam ten days ago kept to himself. Investigations revealed that he was in love with a girl and his parents were unaware of this.
31/10/15 Times of India

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Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy launch India's first airport radio, Mirchi T3

New Delhi: Now, when you'll step into the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport's Terminal 3, be ready to hear a melange of songs co-curated by Bollywood composer trio Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy for what's touted as India's first airport radio, Mirchi T3.

Launched on Friday by Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) in association with Radio Mirchi, Mirchi T3 will bring in a dash of entertainment by providing passengers a chance to hear songs without using any gadgets and also, free of cost.

DIAL CEO I Prabhakara Rao said: "We don't have any announcements going on at T3 airport. So to give it a different atmosphere, we feel proud to bring up Mirchi T3, a unique concept for any airport worldwide.

"Mirchi T3 will bring in a whole new experience to the passengers and will make their presence at the terminal soothing and enjoyable."
30/10/15 IANS/Business Standard

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Now, a short film to encourage Surtis to take AI flights

Surat: Now, a short film has been made to spread awareness among residents to make maximum use of Airbus 320 to travel to domestic and international destinations.

The short documentary is made by We Want Working Airport at Surat (WWWAS), a group fighting for better air connectivity from Surat.

Directed by Gujarati music director Mehul Surti, the film will be screened in multiplexes and cinema halls across the city to encourage Surti travellers to opt for Airbus 320 for their domestic and international travel.

On October 1, Air India commenced its Airbus 320 flight's evening operations between Delhi and Surat. The 168-seater aircraft has an average of 110 daily passengers travelling to and fro between Surat and Delhi. AI also operates a small aircraft during the morning hours between Delhi and Surat.
31/10/15 Times of India

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3.5 kg gold seized at Goa airport

Panaji: Goa customs officials have seized 3.5 kg of gold, which was allegedly sought to be smuggled into the country, from four passengers at the Goa International Airport, a senior official said today.

The haul was made last night after the passengers, including two women, arrived from Kuala Lumpur on an AirAsia flight. They were identified as Chivaganam Muruka (46), Paneerselvam Balaji, Prabhakaran Lakshmi (39) and David Arulmani (37).
"It is the maiden seizure from this flight at the airport. The gold was concealed in a hollow pipe above the rear wheels of the baggage trolleys.
30/10/15 PTI/Business Standard

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Malaysia makes ₹1,500-cr offer to run Shirdi airport

Mumbai: The Maharashtra government has received an expression of interest from private and foreign sovereign entities to operate at least five airports in the State. They include a bid from the Malaysian Government which has agreed to invest ₹1,500 crore to take over Shirdi airport’s operations.

“We have started work on commercialising five airports at Kolhapur, Solapur, Shirdi, Amravati and Jalgaon. We have got proposals from certain private players who want to start these routes. We are working with them,” Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis told BusinessLine.

With 21 airports in the State, Maharashtra has the highest number of flying destinations in the country, yet only four are commercially open because of a lack of funds. Fadnavis is now trying to change that with the help of private investments.

He said the State is receiving a lot of international bids to take up the operations of these airports. “Shirdi airport is where the Malaysian government has come forward and they want to invest ₹1,500 crore and take over all operations,” he said.
29/10/15 Varun Aggarwal/Business Line

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Overlooking wildlife corridor and rich water source, MoEF clears Mopa airport in Goa

Overlooking major environmental concerns of locals and green groups, the ministry of environment and forests has granted a green clearance for Goa's second airport to be built in Mopa village at a cost of Rs3000 crore. The ministry's expert appraisal committee had recommended the project for clearance in its last meeting on October 20, and even before making its minutes public, the ministry granted it a final environmental clearance. The airport project requires a total of 2,271 acres and it will be built in four phases.

The ministry's green clearance has come with certain caveats. The proposed airport has to obtain a 'consent to establish' permission from the State Pollution Control Board and also has to ensure availability of land near the proposed airport for managing traffic near the NH17 junction. Besides, for water conservation, the project proponent has to provide fixtures and rain water harvesting too has to be adopted.

The project's clearance, though, does not make any mention of an active wildlife corridor close to the airport site. The airport site falls in the same region which is a continuation of the Sawantwadi-Dodamarg wildlife corridor of Maharashtra, that is used by tigers and migrating elephant herd.
30/10/15 Nikhil M Ghanekar/Daily News & Analysis

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M'luru International Airport to be upgraded

Mangaluru:  Mangaluru International Airport Director J T Radhakrishna received the World Quality  Commitment Award at Paris in France recently.
The Mangaluru International Airport will get a parallel taxiway, a new control tower and a primary radar, Mangaluru International Airport director J T Radhakrishna.

Addressing mediapersons at the Mangaluru International Airport on Wednesday, the director said that the commissioning of the new radar will help in safe take-off and landing of airplanes even during bad weather.

The radar, however, will be instituted in a separate building. The Airport has already procured the equipment and the work to install it will commence in the new year, he added.

“The flight parking base and aerobridge will be improved. There are, at present, six parking bases. Work to construct three more will be completed by next June. Two additional parallel taxiways will be constructed by March 2016 and, with this, the Airport will be able to operate more flights,” he explained.
30/10/15 Deccan Herald

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Expansion of Mysuru runway: team inspects safety aspects

A top official from the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security of India (BCAS) inspected the Mysuru airport at Mandakalli with regard to the expansion of the existing runway for facilitating the operation of bigger aircraft.

The Additional Commissioner (Security), BCAS, Jyothi Narayan, and four senior officials from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and the Airports Authority of India (AAI), inspected the airport along with the local officials led by Deputy Commissioner C. Shikha.

The existing length of the runway is 1,744 metres and expansion was necessary for an additional 800 metres for operating larger planes.

To facilitate expansion of the runway, construction of a tunnel had been proposed to avoid realignment of the National Highway that passes along the airport.

“The tunnel can save construction of an additional 11 km highway. The facility saves time and cost as a lot of time is spent on acquisition issues. The highway will pass through the tunnel and the aircraft will move over the tunnel,” she explained.
30/10/15 Shankar Bennur/The Hindu

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Arunachal Governor asks PM to reconsider decision on airport

New Delhi: Arunachal Pradesh Governor J P Rajkhowa has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to reconsider the decision to set up a green field airport in the state in view of the "high cost" saying upgradation of an airport in nearby Assam would be economically more viable.

In a letter to the Prime Minister, the Governor said the greenfield airport at Hollongi would cost about Rs 1,150 crore of which land compensation would be about Rs 500 crore.
Rajkhowa said in view of the "high cost", public leaders like Tamiyo Taga, leader of opposition in the Arunachal Pradesh Assembly, some students organisations and social activists met him recently and suggested that instead of a new airport at Hollongi, existing Lilabari airport, adjacent to Lakhimpur district in Assam, should be upgraded at a much lower cost as no land acquisition would be needed.
"Besides, the general people want better roads as the existing PWD roads in the twin cities of Itanagar and Naharlagun as also the National Highways are in terrible and dangerous shape due to lack of any maintenance. Your urgent intervention is solicited in public interest," he wrote in the letter.
30/10/15 PTI/Business Standard

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Now, 2 kg of gold found hidden in shampoo, toothpastes, creams at Mangaluru airport

Mangaluru: The officers of customs at Mangalore International Airport on Wednesday October 28 seized about 2 kg of gold powder valued over Rs 53 lac from two passengers who arrived from Dubai.

The gold was ingeniously hidden in the form of powder in shampoo, toothpastes, Boost, Tang powder and creams. The identities of the accused passengers have not been revealed yet.

Based on the behaviour and responses to specific questions, the officers zeroed in on two passengers, who had arrived from Dubai with assorted consumer items. As the passengers could not provide satisfactory replies, their baggages were subjected to detailed examination, which resulted in the recovery of gold in the form of coarse powder, ingeniously concealed in assorted items like toothpastes, shampoo, face cream, Boost powder, Vaseline etc, which were carried by both the passengers.
29/10/15 daijiworld

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Centre gives green nod to Rs 3000cr intl airport in Goa

The Centre on Wednesday gave green nod for development of Rs 3,000 crore new international airport project at the Mopa village in Goa. The greenfield airport, to be developed in four phases, will have annual passenger capacity of 13.1 million within 30 years, by 2045. It will serve both the tourism and business markets. "As per the recommendation of the Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC), the Ministry of Environment hereby accords environment clearance (EC) for the project greenfield international airport at Mopa," the Union Environment Ministry said in the EC letter written to the Goa government. The environment clearance has been given to the project subject to the compliance of certain specific and general conditions, the letter said. Among some conditions, the Goa government's Directorate of Civil Aviation has been asked to ensure availability of adequate land at the junction of the Mopa airport road and Mumbai-Goa NH-17 for traffic circulation, and to provide all traffic interchanges and proposed clover.
It has also been asked to get approval of National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) for the approach and exit roads to the airport.
28/10/15 moneycontrol.com

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Construction proposal soon for Mopa airport

Panaji: The Goa government will soon float a Request for Proposal (RFP) for the construction of the new greenfield international airport at Mopa in North Goa. The state cabinet on Wednesday gave nod to the proposal to float a RFP to construct the airport.
Addressing a press conference along with Deputy Chief Minister Francis D’Souza after the cabinet meeting, Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar said that initially the estimated cost of the new airport was Rs 3,000 crore but now it is estimated to cost around Rs 3,300 crore as the project will include a six-lane expressway, which will be built to link the airport to the National Highway 17.
“The state government has added many other conditions in the concessional agreement of RFP, which include a six-lane express highway from the NH-17 to the Mopa airport, an aviation skills development centre to train Goans and employment to 75 local trained youth every year by the concessioner, who will construct the airport on public-private partnership basis,” Parsekar said.
29/10/15 Navhind Times

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Mangaluru airport poised for new radar in July

Mangaluru: Come July 2016 and aircraft landing at Mangaluru international airport (MIA) would be comfortably and deftly guided by a primary radar. Sanctioned as a 'special case' by Airports Authority of India (AAI) to MIA, the primary radar will supplement the functions of the secondary radar that the airport currently uses. The commissioning of the primary radar any time after June next year will also reduce diversion of aircraft to other airports because of inclement weather.

J T Radhakrishna, director, MIA said the primary radar will be hosted in a new building adjacent to the CISF barracks on AAI property and close to the new air traffic control complex. The work of constructing the new building is currently underway at an estimated cost of around Rs 5 crore. "We have already received the primary radar equipment which costs about Rs 20 crore," he said, adding the AAI is expecting to commission this radar by July next year.
29/10/15 Jaideep Shenoy/Times of India

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Don't Blame Airport Security For The Queues. It's Your Handbags, Say Airport Cops

Data analysis by the CISF says that Indian flyers carry on an average at least two pieces of hand-baggage instead of a single one. This is not counting the laptops and ladies' handbags.

Ideally, a senior official told the Hindustan Times, no more than 300 bags ought to go through an X-ray scanner every hour. "But since passengers carry more baggage, the clearance rate almost doubles. This is a grave security risk," he added.

On an average, passengers carry 1.8 cabin bags. This means instead of an average of 12 seconds per bag for a robust scan, each bag ends up being scanned for 5-7 seconds, which results in sub-optimal security.

Another official said that coupled with a shortage in staff and passenger glut-- the Indira Gandhi International Airport alone sees a 100,000 passengers daily-- this led to longer queues and clearing times for bags.
29/10/15 Jacob Koshy/Huffington Post

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Mangaluru airport gets international award

Mangaluru:  Mangaluru International Airport has received the World Quality Commitment (WQC) award in Gold category, which was instituted by the Spain-based Business Initiative Directions (BID).
Speaking to presspersons on the sidelines of a programme to celebrate the award in Mangaluru on Thursday, JT Radhakrishna, Director, Mangaluru International Airport, said that BID took the decision to present this award after the research and analysis carried out by quality hunters, entrepreneurs, and experts in quality to recognise the contribution of Mangaluru International Airport in terms of leadership, quality and excellence.
29/10/15 Business Line

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Missing schizophreniac woman lived in airport for eight days

Bangalore: When 24-year-old Namrata Roy went suddenly missing on October 19, her panicked husband searched the city high and low, even flying out to their hometown of Kolkata in the hope of finding her.

Having flown out of and back in to Kempegowda International Airport, it was tragic indeed that the techie never noticed his wife there too; only, she hadn't flown anywhere - she had been living in the airport waiting lounge for over eight days, consuming pan parag as food! She was finally found on October 26 when some NGO workers found her wandering around the airport and brought her to the office of the city police commissioner.

A native of Kolkata, Namrata is a B Tech graduate who married software engineer Sourav barely two years ago. The couple reside in HSR Layout, and Namrata had recently quit her job. What's little known, however, is that this bright young woman suffers from paranoid schizophrenia.

When the police checked the missing persons database, they found a case with her name and photograph that had been filed based on a report in HSR Layout police station on October 19. Subsequently, her husband was informed that his wife had been traced, and she soon divulged details of her 'extended stay' at a supposedly secure international airport for eight whole days.
29/10/15 Hemanth Kashyap/Bangalore Mirror 

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CISF constable shoots himself dead at Chennai airport

Chennai: A 27-year-old Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) constable deployed at the Chennai airport shot himself dead with his service rifle on Thursday afternoon.

Police identified the deceased as Pulak Rajbongshi, hailing from Assam. He was on duty at gate No H 14. He committed suicide in a restroom at the airport.

The reason for his suicide was not known, police said.
29/10/5 Daniel George/Times of India

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4 flights make emergency landing at IGI

New Delhi:  Three international flights and a domestic one made emergency landings at the Indira Gandhi International Airport on Wednesday evening due to fuel shortage and fire alert.

A Kalitta Air flight K4 244 (Leipzig to New Delhi) had to make a landing at IGI after reporting a fire emergency on board.
The other three flights-Air Arabia flight G9 465 (Sharjah to New Delhi), Kalitta Air flight K4 247 (Leipzig to New Delhi) and Air Asia flight I5 3426 (Pune to Jaipur)-had to land after reporting "less holding fuel".
29/10/15 Times of India

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Drone whodunnit grips IGI agencies: CISF, IAF, ATC blame each other for incident

A blame game has erupted over the aerial intrusion by a drone at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA).
While the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), the agency which is responsible for security at the airport, says the Indian Air Force (IAF) and Air Traffic Control are responsible for handling such suspicious activities, ATC officials said the CISF official did not take information on the drone seriously and did not act swiftly.
The IAF, on the other hand said the issue is still unresolved as it is uncertain what the object exactly was. Interestingly, all three agencies are clueless about the object.
"Initially, an IAF officer noticed some suspicious object flying in the perimeter of the IGIA and raised an alarm with ATC officials and other agency. Later after analying the object, the ATC suspected the unidentified object to be drone. Around 7.37 am on Tuesday, the Delhi Police, CISF and Intelligence Bureau was informed about the suspicious object but before anyone could understand what the flying object was, it vanished leaving officials in a tizzy," a senior government official told Mail Today.
29/10/15 Ankur Sharma/India Today

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AAI transfers two more airports to Bengal

Kolkata: Balurghat and Malda are all set to be added to the state's aviation map as Airports Authority of India (AAI) will transfer these two airports to the state government against a token price of Re 1.

The state government is now engaged with several airlines for running regular scheduled or non-scheduled flights that would connect Andal airport in south Bengal with Coochbehar, Malda and Balurghat in north Bengal.

The PWD will spend Rs 6 crore for renovating both the airports. The state government has also engaged RITES for preparing a detailed project report for the project. "At the recent meeting between Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee and Union civil aviation minister Ashok Gajapati Raju, AAI agreed to transfer the non-functional airports to the state in lease for 30 years," said a transport officer.
29/10/15 The Times Of India

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Air India SATS appoints Mike Chew as new CEO in India

Mumbai: Airport services company Air India SATS Airport (AISATS) has appointed Mike Chew as its new CEO to replace Willy Ko, who was the CEO of AISATS since April 2010.

“The civil aviation sector in India is poised to grow significantly. This will require world class airport services, which we are strongly poised to deliver on the back of our strong local and global experience in the business, and the use of cutting-edge technology,” Chew said in a press statement.
29/10/15 Business Line

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Chartered flight cancelled as no staff to give clearance

JAISALMER: On one hand, while the state and Central government seem to be making all efforts to promote tourism, on the other hand, the tourism industry continues to be discouraged with the many loopholes that exist in the government's system. In a recent incident, chartered flight of two foreign tourists could not come to Jaisalmer from Delhi beacuse of shortage of Border Intelligence staff. At present, the personnel of this department are deployed in Barmer for CM's visit and the coming RAS examination. These chartered flights could not be given security clearance due to shortage of BI staff at the Jaisalmer airport. Confirming the incident, private chartered company officer Raghvendra Singh said the chartered flight of his company was to leave for Jaisalmer from Delhi on Saturday at 11 am with two British tourists, but on not getting security clearance, their flight could not depart. When Singh contacted the BI security officers at Jaisalmer, they expressed their inability and said that whatever staff they had was on examination duty and security arrangement for CM visit.
28/10/15 NYOOOZ

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Builder wanted for 9 yrs held at airport

MUMBAI: A builder from Versova, Riyaz Bhatti, was held at the airport before he could take a flight to Johannesburg around 5 am on Wednesday. A look-out circular (LOC) had been issued against him in 2007 for his role in serious criminal offences.
An officer from Sahar police station told TOI that Bhatti was nabbed during his immigration check. "When his passport was put through the scanner, it was found that an LOC had been issued against him in 2006," said the officer.

Bhatti's passport expired in 2006, after which he applied for its renewal. When it came up for police verification, it was rejected as there were cases registered against him.
29/10/15 V Narayan/The Times Of India

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Trichy airport to get new expansion plan

TRICHY: The Trichy International Airport authorities have decided to scrap an expansion design of the terminals planned three years ago following the recent surge in passenger flow at the airport.

As per the earlier design, the AAI has planned to expand the departure terminal by 80m and arrival terminal by 101m at a cost of Rs 232 crore. The authorities are now planning to change the design considering the increase in number of passengers.

The Trichy airport has also become a profitable venture by making a profit of Rs 5 crore per year.

While the total income from the airport in 2013-2014 was Rs 57 crore, it increased to Rs 65 crore in 2014-15.

The profit has been contributed by passengers from southern and central districts travelling to south-eastern countries.
28/10/15 The Times Of India

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Day after murder, airport seeks to sanitise premises

Chennai:  A day after a tea vendor was murdered at the parking lot of the city airport, Airports Authority of India (AAI) has requested police to keep unauthorised people away from the airport campus. Though airport officials and the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) have been asking the police to keep vendors out, several people set up stalls on motorcycles or pushcarts to cater to needs of drivers and contract staff working at the airport.

The murder that took place in front of the international terminal which is a high security zone has rattled AAI officials. It is suspected that the men had a fight over selling wares inside the parking area. A senior official said the incident has brought to light the lapse in security. "The city-side area of the airport which has parking space and metro station is a sensitive area. It has to be monitored with intensity," he added.
29/10/15 Times of India

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Gold seized from passengers at MIA

Mangaluru: Two persons have been arrested at the Mangalore International Airport for allegedly smuggling two kg of gold valued at Rs 53 lakh.

The arrested have been identified as Hanif (50) and Bashir (35), both from Kasaragod in Kerala, a Customs release said.

They had arrived here from Dubai yesterday morning.
29/10/15 PTI

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Tea seller stabbed to death at Chennai airport

Chennai: A fight between two tea sellers at a parking lot at Chennai airport on Tuesday morning resulted in the death of one of them.
Police said Karthikeyan (42), a resident of Avadi, and Setha Ravi, a resident of Tambaram, used to sell tea on bicycles at the airport parking lot.
On Tuesday morning, both were selling tea to a large number taxi drivers and others. Suddenly, a verbal duel erupted between the duo over crossing the boundary earmarked between them and snatching each other's customers. In a fit of rage, Karthikeyan whipped out a knife and stabbed Setha Ravi in his stomach.
27/10/15 Daniel George/Times of India

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Stray drone at Delhi airport, security clueless about where it came from

New Delhi: It was business as usual at the IGI airport on Tuesday. Serpentine queues, harried passengers, overworked airport staff. In the midst of all this, a major security lapse took place. Our sources at the airport said the Air Traffic Controllers noticed an 'unknown object' flying over the runway. It was a suspected drone which CISF personnel, responsible for airport security, failed to notice initially. When they did, they informed the internal control room. By that time, the drone was nowhere in sight.
Initial reports suggest the drone was first noticed when planes were taking off from the runway. According to a senior CISF official who wished to remain anonymous, a CISF inspector has been suspended for this lapse. He was in charge when the drone was noticed.
Delhi Police officials, who did not wish to be named, confirmed to Mail Today that they had received information about a suspected flying object over the Dwarka or Raj Nagar side of the IGI airport.
A high-level meeting was called in the evening, where top officials of the Intelligence Bureau, the CISF and other departments discussed the matter, according to the CISF source. The central government is taking this as a major security lapse as agencies have no details on the suspected drone, said the senior official.
"On Tuesday, ATC noticed a suspected object flying over the airport. Later, security agencies, including the control room, were informed, but by that time the drone had vanished. A high-level security meeting was later called and CISF has suspended one inspector-rank official and summoned control room staff," a senior official who was present at the meeting held at IGI airport told Mail Today.
28/10/15 Ankur Sharma/Mail Today/India Today

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Minister urges continuation of Thiruvananthapuram–Bangalore flight service

Thiruvananthapuram: The withdrawal of the Air India flight from Thiruvananthapuram to Bengaluru has sparked a row, with minister K Babu himself coming out seeking the continuation of the service.

There are allegations that the decision for withdrawal of the flight, taken by the sales and commercial department of the Air India in Chennai, was to help the private airlines operating in this sector.

The last Air India service from Thiruvananthapuram to Bengaluru was on Monday and 70 passengers had to be offloaded due to over booking. On Sunday about 40 passengers were offloaded due to the same reason.
"It was a very effective route as far as Air India is concerned. Several IT professionals and Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) officials were totally dependent on this service. It was a busy sector for the Air India,'' said N Kannan, station manager of Air India.
Minister in charge of airports K Babu wrote to Union minister of civil aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju and to chairman and managing director of Air India Ashwani Lohani, on Monday, seeking the continuation of the flight service from Thiruvananthapuram to Bengaluru.
27/10/15 Times of India

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Bid to build cargo terminal at Dabolim suffers setback

Panaji: Airport Authority of India's attempt to build and operate a state-of-the art 24x7 cargo terminal at Dabolim in the old international terminal encountered turbulence as successive tenders to select a reputed agency to operate the cargo facility have failed.

The airport director's office has floated a tender twice but on both occasions just a single company participated, the same company on both occasions.

"We are positive that something will develop soon. One competitor stated that they could not submit their bid due to technical glitches so we have to now decide whether to extend the tender or refloat it. But we are positive that definitely within the next 2-4 months we will have an agency which will operate, provide the manpower and the machines to run the cargo terminal," director Srinivasa Rao said.
28/10/15 Times of India

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Cage kept at Udaipur airport to tackle stray animals

Udaipur : Concerned by the growing menace of stray animals at the Maharana Pratap airport at Dabok , the forest authorities have kept a cage after identification of a sensitive spot here. At a meeting of the airport environment management committee on Monday, the issue was discussed at length and suggestions were made to keep stray animals specially jackals out of the airport premises and runway area. Last week, a jackal hit an aeroplane of Jet airways causing an emergency landing, luckily a mishap was averted thus preventing harm to life and property. After the matter was reported to the administration, the expertise of forest department was sought for taking immediate steps to prevent such incidents in future.
Apart from stray jackals, controlling the proliferation of wild cats, dogs and birds have been also included in the program. There have been instances when the stray animals were not only found around the airport boundary, but also managed to get onto the runway.
27/10/15 Udaipur kiran

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Rise in passenger flow may win city international flights

Bhubaneswar: The increasing number of overseas passengers in feeder flights from the city has generated a ray of hope that there may be direct international flights from here soon. The Biju Patnaik International Airport authorities feel they would be able to attract an international player soon to run a flight from here.

At present, two feeder flights of Air India are taking international passengers up to New Delhi from where the passengers board direct flights to different destinations. Three months after launching the first feeder flight, Air India added another one on Sunday.

"The passenger flow is encouraging. On the first day of launch of Air India's second flight, 17 passengers booked tickets from here and boarded the plane. In the first flight on the same day, there were about 40 overseas passengers," said airport director Sharad Kumar. He added that the success of feeder flights would help the airport authorities woo other international players.
28/10/15 Riyan Ramanath V/Times of India

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Malindo Air arrives in Amritsar

Malindo Air on 25 October began its seventh route to India from its Kuala Lumpur (KUL) base. Amritsar (ATQ) will be served thrice-weekly using the airline’s 737-900s. The 4,276-kilometre route becomes the airline’s longest and the LCC will not face any direct competition. Amritsar joins Delhi, Kochi, Mumbai, Thiruvananthapuram, Tiruchirapally and Visakhapatnam which are the other Indian cities already served by the carrier. In all Malindo Air now serves 19 destinations non-stop from Kuala Lumpur. Located in northern India, Amritsar’s airport handled just over one million passengers in the last year, around one quarter of which were travelling on international flights.
28/10/15 Anna.aero

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Chamber officials meet CM on airport development

Kozhikode: The Calicut Chamber of Commerce said on Tuesday that its team of office-bearers met Chief Minister Oommen Chandy in the city and discussed about the Calicut International Airport at Karipur and sought his intervention in developing it.

In a press release, chamber secretary Abdulla Maliyekal said the Chief Minister had assured the team that after the local body elections, efforts would be made to solve the problems at the airport.
28/10/15 The Hindu

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Second road to Pune Airport to take flight

Pune: It has been a common observation that with the number of flights (and commuters) in and out of the city increasing manifold over the last two years, the existing approach road to Pune Airport has proved less than adequate — especially during peak hours.

In fact, traffic chaos at several junctions along the route has been creating hardships steadily for commuters, with many unable to reach the airport on time for their flights, and causing additional issues to airport staff by demanding special service. Now, to tackle this, the Airport Advisory Committee (AAC) is pushing a proposal for an additional access road to the airport, via the Phoenix City Mall.

The proposal for the new road draws a path from behind the mall, which is currently used as a parking zone. At an AAC meeting on Sunday, members put forth the demand before civic officials, demanding that they acquire this land to develop a road. "There is a need for an alternative access route to the airport. It will solve regular traffic jam issues. PMC has assured of doing the needful," said Anil Shirole, MP and chairman of AAC.
28/10/15 Sukirt Gumaste/Pune Mirror

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Chennai Airport Records Slowest Growth in the Country

Chennai: Chennai Airport has had nothing but bad press for a while now and while the number of people complaining about its alleged shortfalls only keeps rising, the airports other numbers lag behind its counterparts’. According to data from the Airports Authority of India, Chennai airport is one of the slowest growing airports in the country – both in terms of passenger traffic and aircraft movements. Chennai Airport saw total passenger traffic grow by 5.2 per cent during the month of August compared to last year. It’s a decent growth figure, you might think, but take a look at India’s other airports in major cities, the one that comes the closest to Chennai growth rate is still two times more. Hyderabad, the second lowest, has seen a growth rate of 11 per cent in the total number of passengers. Others like Delhi, Bangalore and Ahmedabad are way ahead. Delhi saw passenger traffic grow by 15.3 per cent, while Bangalore and Ahmedabad saw 21.2 per cent and 22.5 per cent growth respectively.
28/10/15 New Indian Express

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AAI invites artists for exhibition again

Raipur: The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has once again invited amateur and budding artists for display of their art work at the Swami Vivekananda Airport in Raipur.

The AAI in June this year had invited artists to display their work of art at the Airport.

A panel of artists would be formed who would be allowed to display their art work at a specific date and time as would be determined by the Airport Director, officials stated. The art work to be showcased by artists could include Sculpture or any other form of art which would not be limited to paintings only. The artists would also be allowed to sell their works, they stated. The AAI has although cautioned artists that their work  should be original.

 Notably, Swami Vivekananda Airport has received the National Tourism Award 2013-14 in the Airports category recently.

 President of India Pranab Mukherjee presented the National Tourism Awards 2013-14 at a function held at Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi on September 18.
28/10/15 Pioneer 

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India-Africa Forum Summit: Business jet asked to stay away till Friday morning

New Delhi: Private and business jets operators have been barred from flying in and out of Indira Gandhi International airport here and its adjoining aerodromes for two days in the wake of ongoing India-Africa Forum Summit, which is being attended by several top international leaders.

The curbs on flying by the non-scheduled operators remained in force for over six hours today, sources said.

The restrictions would also remain in effect for almost entire day tomorrow, according to a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) issued by the Airports Authority of India (AAI).

"Between 1130 hours and 1800 hours on October 28 and between 0300 hours to 1230 hours and 1330 hours to 1730 hours no flight (will be) permitted to take off and land at the Indira Gandhi International Airport, Delhi, and subsidiary airports within 300 kms zone of Delhi," the NOTAM said.
28/10/15 PTI/Economic Times

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Construction proposal for Rs 3,300-crore greenfield airport soon:Goa CM

Panaji: The Goa government would soon float a Request For Proposal (RFP) for the new greenfield international airport at Mopa in north Goa, which would cost around Rs.3,300 crore, Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar said on Wednesday.

"The Mopa airport, including six-laning of road from the airport to National Highway 17, will cost around Rs.3,300 crore. The first phase costing around Rs.1,800 crore will be completed by 2019 and cater to 4.9 million passengers," Parsekar said at a press conference in state secretariat here.

Five companies - Airports Authority of India, GVK Mumbai, GMR Airport, Essel Infra Mumbai and Voluptas Developers - have already been selected by the state government following a request for qualification process.
28/10/15 IANS/Economic Times

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Delhi Airport gears up for Diwali in GRAND style

New Delhi:  Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) is all set to celebrate the Festival of Lights; Diwali with all its passengers and partners. The airport operator, DIAL today announced month long celebrations that will last up to middle of November 2015.
A truly delightful experience awaits the IGIA passengers both at T3 as well as T1 as they fly in and out of Delhi Airport during the festivities. Larger than life Diyas and lanterns; a records 3 km long LED lighting on Terminals, decorated entry gates and lamp posts are part of this mammoth  decoration. Two 15 feet tall and wide idols of Indian national bird-Peacock (at domestic as well as International retail SHA) serve as the hallmark of this initiative. A great emphasis has also been paid on diversity. 15 National languages and 13 International languages have been used for Diwali Greetings.
28/10/15 Orissa Diary

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AI tests night flight to Port Blair

Kolkata: National carrier Air India operated a 'probing flight' to Andaman & Nicobar Islands from Kolkata on Tuesday evening to test the waters before night flights to Port Blair are commercially launched. SpiceJet had on September 14 operated a test flight to Port Blair after sunset. If the flight report turns out to be positive, it would pave the way for international flights to operate to Port Blair and lead to a quantum jump in tourist influx to the Andaman archipelago. For any airport to get an international tag, it has to be operational 24x7. Till now, commercial flights to Port Blair have been operating only during the day. Not only did this restrict the number of flights, passengers got stranded when poor weather prevented the flights from operating during the day.
28/10/15 NYOOOZ

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Indian-Origin Britisher Held For Smuggling Gold at Delhi Airport

New Delhi: An Indian-origin Britisher is among two persons arrested for allegedly trying to smuggle into the country gold worth about Rs. 1.75 crore at Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) in New Delhi.

The accused were intercepted by customs officials after their arrival from Hong Kong yesterday.

"The passengers attempted to clear the gold weighing seven kgs clandestinely out of IGI airport," a press release issued today by the customs said.
28/10/15 PTI/NDTV

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Two Indians Arrested At Newark Airport For Bid To Smuggle Aliens

Two people from India, who allegedly conspired to smuggle illegal immigrants from the country to the United States, were arrested last week on their arrival at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey and charged with conspiracy to bring foreign nationals into the U.S. for financial gains.

Authorities said in a press release that Nilesh Kumar Patel, 41, and Harsad Mehta, 65, both of India, allegedly ran a smuggling operation and were trying to find methods to illegally smuggle foreign nationals from India into the U.S.

Both were arrested Oct. 21 on their arrival at the airport by special agents of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

New Jersey U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman, who announced the Oct. 21 arrest of the duo, said that investigations revealed that a smuggling organization recruited Indian nationals and others to pay fees in exchange for passage to the United States.

Patel, 41 and Mehta were charged by criminal complaint with one count of conspiracy to bring in and harbor aliens. In addition, Patel was charged with six counts and Mehta is charged with four counts of smuggling foreign nationals into the U.S. for private financial gain.
28/10/15 News India Times

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Kerala native held with 1kg gold

Panaji: Customs personnel on Tuesday arrested 21-year-old Farhan Abdulla Haneef Abdulla, a resident of Kasargod, Kerala, and seized 1kg gold worth 27 crore at Dabolim international airport. Abdulla had arrived from Dubai.
A customs officer said that the accused carried the gold at the airport and when he got off the plane, taped the gold bar to the bottom of an airport luggage trolley with adhesive tape.
28/10/15 Times of India

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Air India aircraft grounded after it’s hit by van

Mumbai: An Air India aircraft, Airbus 320, was grounded Sunday morning after being hit by a catering van. The Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) has ordered a probe into the incident, which occurred around 5 am on Sunday when the aircraft, after arrival, was standing in the bay. Suddenly, a catering van, supposed to supply food to the aircraft, hit its middle portion and a few parts of the aircraft were damaged. Later, when Air India engineers checked the aircraft, they declared it technically unfit and grounded it for repair and maintenance work.
BCAS is investigating circumstances under which the van came so close to the aircraft. A BCAS official said, “Luckily, the incident was not big, otherwise some fatality would have occurred. We have decided norms and conditions for every van which operates in the air side area, it seems there was some man-made fault.”
27/10/15 Ashita Dadheech/Asian Age

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Udaipur Airport Runway to get rid of Wild Trespassers

Taking the step towards preventing wild animals to enter the airport runway area, Udaipur’s Maharana Pratap Airport Authority has installed cages to seize wild animals from entering  the sensitive area of airport.

The action was taken with the assistance of a team of forest department. The airport authority is struggling hard to keep away Jackals from the airport runaway who often wander in the runway area in search of food creating threat for the air traffic.

The animals were caught and then freed far away in jungles, said Layk Ali Khan, assistance wild life conservator who with his team inspected the areas of runaway with airport officials.
27/10/15  Zaheer Abbas/Udaipur Times

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Efforts under way to revive Salem Airport, says official

Coimbatore: Salem Airport is fit for operations and efforts have been taken to revive it, Secretary for Ministry of Civil Aviation R.N. Choubey said here on Sunday.

He told this to The Hindu after chairing a review meeting here to revive the airport. Established about two decades ago, the Salem Airport had only one flight a day connecting the city to Chennai. However, commercial operations came to a standstill after the airline operator shutdown operations three years ago.

Mr. Choubey said that there are 300 smaller airports and airstrips in smaller cities and towns in the country that are not operational. Similar efforts, as in the case of Salem, have been taken up for other airports too. Some of the airstrips were laid for World War II and is not in use since then. Construction of buildings, providing infrastructure and carrying out maintenance works will be done in other airports and damaged airstrips.
27/10/15 MK Ananth/The Hindu

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Government Bid to Bring Puducherry Back on Aviation Map

Puducherry: The Union Territory government has initiated measures for resumption of flight operations from Puducherry Airport after Alliance Air, a subsidiary of Air India, suspended their operations abruptly in mid-October.

The government has offered to pay a Viability Gap Grant of `2 crore to Alliance Air for operation of daily flights to and from Bengaluru, Chief Secretary Manoj Parida told mediapersons here on Monday.

In a letter sent to the government on October 23, the operator had expressed its inability to operate flights unless the government removes the Viability Gap Grant ceiling of `2 crore annually and paid the amount for a period of six months for unsold seats.

Though there was no formal agreement between Alliance Air and Puducherry government, an understanding was reached with the operator that the government would provide the Viability Gap Grant of `1,000 per unsold seat, with a ceiling of `2 crore annually, said Parida.
27/10/15 New Indian Express

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British Airways deploys its first Boeing on Delhi route

New Delhi: In a sign of the growing importance of Indian aviation market for the world's biggest airlines, British Airways has deployed its first Boeing 787-9 on the London-Delhi route. The brand new aircraft landed in Delhi on Monday.

BA's second 787-9 joined the fleet last week and will start flying to Abu Dhabi and Muscat on November 5. Other future routes include Kuala Lumpur, Austin and San Jose, California.

The new 787s are the centrepiece of BA's £5 billion investment programme to benefit customers. A total of 42 Dreamliners will join BA and this aircraft will become the mainstay of the airline's fleet. BA's B787-9 Dreamliner is 20 feet longer than its 787-8 predecessor and has four classes with an addition of a new first cabin.
26/10/15 Saurabh Sinha/Economic Times

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Subsidy standoff keeps flights off air

Puducherry: The Puducherry Government is pulling out all stops to get Alliance Air to resume the flights which the operator suspended since October 15 following a standoff over subsidy.

Alliance Air, the budget airlines of Air India, was operating flights to Bengaluru on six days a week since April 14 before it suspended services ostensibly over “payment issues.”

Chief Minister N. Rangasamy has already spoken to Union Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju Pusapati and Tourism Minister Mahesh Sharma seeking the Centre’s immediate intervention in the issue, especially as Puducherry is on the cusp of peak tourism season. “Apart from continuing to look for other operators to operate on this route, we are also rethinking our current strategy in terms of flight frequency out of Puducherry,” Manoj Parida, Chief Secretary said. “Perhaps, we could go in for a four-day a week schedule to improve operational viability,” he said.

Mr. Parida has also raised the Alliance Air issue with M. Sathyavathi, Director General of Civil Aviation, who incidentally has previously served as Chief Secretary here.

According to sources in the government, Alliance Air had raised a demand for Rs. 2 crore as viability gap fund in spite of having operated for just six months.
27/10/15 M. Dinesh Varma/The Hindu

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Art work displayed art gallery of BPI Airport, Bhubaneswar

Bhubaneswar: In an effort to encourage and promote Amateur/Budding Artists, Airports Authority of India, has developed an Art Gallery in the public concourse area of New Domestic Terminal (T1), BPI Airport, Bhubaneswar, a platform to facilitate the budding artists to exhibit their creations/artwork and make a reasonably significant mark in the Art world. The artist shall have a right to put a tag “for sale” and the Art work shall carry price tag fixed on it. It is understood that this step taken by AAI will help create vocation and much anticipated prominence to the local talent.
27/10/15 Orissa Diary

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Vigilance Awareness Week inaugurated Bhubaneswar airport

Bhubaneswar: As per the guidelines issued by Central Vigilance Commission, Vigilance Awareness Week for the year 2015 would be observed from 26th to 31st October 2015 by Airports Authority of India. The theme identified for observance of VAW-2015 is “Preventive Vigilance as a tool of Good Governance.”  The VAW was inaugurated at Biju Patnaik International airport, Bhubaneswar on today by lightening of lamp by the Airport Director, Shri Sharad Kumar and other senior officers in the New Integrated Office Complex of Bhubaneswar Airport. On this occasion all the employees of Bhubaneswar Airport took pledge that they shall work unstintingly for eradication of corruption in all spheres of life.
26/10/15 Orissadiary

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Lapses in CM’s security at Indore airport

Indore : Lapses in the security of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan at airport came to light on Monday. According to police sources, five local Congress leaders succeeded in entering the VIP lounge and met the Chief Minister without permission.

After arriving at the airport at 12.50 pm, Chouhan reached at the VIP lounge where the Congress leaders – MLA Jeetu Patwari, ex-MLAs Satyanarayan Patel, Tulsi Silavat and two others reached and handed over a memorandum to the CM highlighting the problems of farmers and seeking relief for them.
27/10/15 Free Press Journal

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Proposed Pune international airport: No decision on site at Nitin Gadkari meet

Union transport minister Nitin Gadkari Sunday said that the expansion of the Lohegaon airport would suffice demands only for the next three to five years. He added, “A new airport is imperative in the present situation. I believe the state government is doing its best to acquire land.” However, there was no positive outcome on the discussion over the site for the newly proposed international airport. The Lohegaon airport expansion was the focus of Gadkari’s meeting in the city on Sunday. According to officials, a visit by the MADC and civil aviation officials has been fixed on November 1 to discuss the new airport. The CM is also set to convene a meeting on the same issue. The new airport will need 1200 hectares and the runaways have to be east-west.
27/10/15 Indian Express

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Police warn scrap between officers and IGI officials is hampering airport security

Tussles between agencies at the Delhi airport, including Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL), have started benefiting the accused in court cases, leading to acquittals.
According to Delhi Police, Investigation officers are also facing problems in court as DIAL officials are not cooperating in investigations, and officials avoid being complainants, which is the need of the hour.
On the other side, DIAL has turned down Delhi Police's request and slapped an order from the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security of India (BCAS), issued in 2005, in its reply.According to the police, the issue urgently requires attention as it is hampering aviation security.
Sensing the gravity of the issue, Delhi Police recently sent a letter to DIAL Executive Director and Security Delhi, Ranjit Narayan, and asked him to direct the concerned officials to file a complaint before police.
According to a senior police official, in various cases courts have questioned the capabilities of the investigation officer, as the DIAL official who detect the arms/ammunition first was not the complainant.
Mail Today has accessed the exchange of letters between Delhi Police and DIAL.
“I have raised this issue and sent a letter to DIAL and requested them to direct the concerned officials to file a complaint before police, who detected arms/ammunition from the passenger at X-ray scanning machine. Complainant should be DIAL official or airline whosoever detected arms/ammunition. We want that Delhi Police should not face problem in court proving the facts and accused should not get any benefit of this,” DCP, IGI, Dinesh Kumar Gupta told Mail Today.
27/10/15 Ankur Sharma/Mail online India

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Massive debts bring down shutters on Ahmedabad airport bookstore

Ahmedabad: Regulars to the domestic terminal at the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport are probably familiar with the little bookstore that shut shop more than a year ago. The reason, it seems, is that the owner has to clear a massive debt with the Airports Authority of India (AAI) and the two parties are currently involved in a legal tussle on the matter. While concerned authorities said the unit will continue to house a bookstore, the tender for the same will be authorised only after the legal matter has been solved.

The book store, named Shubh Kamna, located near the security check-in, downed its shutters around a year and a half ago. It was especially popular among tourists, especially foreigners, as it sold memorabilia related to Mahatma Gandhi, said Mahesh Kumar, senior manager of the commercial department of AAI (Ahmedabad), told Mirror "The shop owner was a resident of Jaipur who had registered the store in his wife Geeta Tiwari's name. The shop opened doors in April 2013. Eventually, the owner took permission from the airport authorities and expanded the store within two months of opening.
27/10/15 Ahmedabad Mirror

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Woman Held at Indira Gandhi International Airport With Gold Worth Rs. 25 Lakh

New Delhi: A woman was arrested at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGI) while allegedly trying to smuggle gold valued at about Rs. 25 lakh, police said today.
The accused, who hails from Amritsar, was intercepted on Saturday by customs officials after her arrival from Dubai.
She was wearing gold ornaments on both her wrists and had covered them under the full sleeves of her suit.
26/10/15 Indo-Asian News Service/NDTV

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Two flights from Chennai diverted due to low visibility

Coimbatore: Due to low visibility, two early morning flights from Chennai could not make landing at the Coimbatore Airport on Saturday. While one was diverted to Kochi, another one was sent back to Chennai.

According to the airport director, G Prakash Reddy, Indigo 6E 375 and Spicejet SG 3021, which took off from Chennai at 6.30am and 7.30am, respectively, could not make landing at the Coimbatore Airport as the visibility on Saturday morning was just 1.5km, against the minimum required visibility of 2.5km.

"As the flights neared the Coimbatore Airport, the captains felt the visibility was not enough for landing. While the Indigo flight was directed to fly back to Chennai, the Spicejet was diverted to Kochi," said Reddy.
25/10/15 Times of India

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We'll reach passenger capacity of 60 mn at Navi Mumbai by 2030: Cidco chief

Mumbai: Building new infrastructure is never an easy task. It becomes harder when the agency entrusted with the task is government-owned and government-run. When the land required for construction already has people living on it, the matter gets even trickier. And when the region where the project is proposed to come up is a hot bed of political factions, the magnitude of the task multiplies.

The Navi Mumbai airport is a prime example of all the variables mentioned above coming together in a deadly cocktail. When the project was first conceived in the late 1990s, it was to come up by 2004-05 and was envisaged to cost one-third of its present estimates.

Now, the first flight from the new airport is expected to take off in October 2019 and the project is expected to cost Rs 14,000 crore. Four bids of interest have come in. The concession agreement and the request for qualification is being finalised. By November 15, City and Industrial Development Corporation of Maharashtra (Cidco) hopes to hand over documents to the four interested bidders.
26/10/15 Anjuli Bhargava/Business Standard

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Passengers lose temper as Bangalore -Mumbai flight is delayed

Mumbai: Around 156 passengers who were traveling to Bangalore from Mumbai faced an irritating situation when a Indigo flight that was scheduled to depart at about 8.45 am kept getting delayed. The flight, 6E 474, was scheduled to depart from the city airport at about 8.50 am but right before the standard departure time, the airline on its counter announced the flight was late, informed a source from the Mumbai International Airport Limited.
Later, at about 9.10 am, the airline announced the flight would take off at around 9.55 pm. “This made the passengers lose their temper and they started shouting slogans against the airline,” said a source from Mumbai Airport. Finally, the flight took off at about 10.45 am.
26/10/15 Asian Age

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Efforts underway to revive Salem Airport

Coimbatore: Salem Airport is fit for operations and efforts have been taken to revive it, Secretary for Ministry of Civil Aviation R.N. Choubey said here on Sunday.

He told this to The Hindu after chairing a review meeting here on Saturday to revive the airport.

Established about two decades ago, the Salem Airport had only one flight a day connecting the city to Chennai. However, commercial operations came to a standstill after the airline operator shutdown operations three years ago.

Mr. Choubey said that there are 300 smaller airports and airstrips in smaller cities and towns in the country that are not operational.

Similar efforts, as in the case of Salem, have been taken up for other airports too. Some of the airstrips were laid for World War II and is not in use since then. Construction of buildings, providing infrastructure and carrying out maintenance works will be done in other airports and damaged airstrips.
26/10/15 MK Ananth/The Hindu

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Air India adds 2 International Connectivity Flights from Bhubaneswar

Bhubaneswar: Air India added two more international connectivity flights from the Biju Patnaik International Airport here to New Delhi on Sunday. The airlines introduced two international connectivity flights AI-077 and AI-075 from here to New Delhi, would be operated on spoke and hub basis.

AI-077 and AI-075 will arrive in Bhubaneswar from New Delhi at 9.15 AM and 1.15 PM respectively. And both the flights – AI-078 and AI-076 will leave from Bhubaneswar to New Delhi from here at 10.15 AM and 2.15 PM respectively, as per the scheduled.
26/10/15 Odisha News Insight

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Maiden Kuala Lumpur-Amritsar flight starts operations from Amritsar

Amritsar: The maiden Kuala Lumpur-Amritsar flight began its operations from today.
Initially scheduled thrice a week on every Wednesday, Friday and Sunday between Amritsar and the Malaysian capital city, the flight is being run by Malaysia’s Malindo Air.
The inaugural OD271 flight from Kuala Lumpur with 130 passengers on board landed at Sri Guru Ramdas Jee International Airport at about 12:30 pm.
It is the sole carrier to connect South-East Asia to Amritsar. The departing maiden flight OD 272 took off from Amritsar at 1:15 pm. It is expected to land at Kuala Lumpur international airport at 9:35 pm same day.
Chandran Rama Murthy, CEO of Malindo Air, said, “The Sikh population in Malaysia numbers about 2.50 lakh and air connectivity with the city of Golden Temple would offer them convenient travel.  Malindo Air debuts this latest route, Kuala Lumpur to Amritsar, at a promotional fare of only Rs 14,499 one-way for economy class and Rs 36,499 one-way for business class, all inclusive of light refreshments and a meal, in-flight entertainment and free baggage allowance.”
25/10/15 Tribune

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CII wants expansion of airport in Tiruchi

Tiruchi: The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Tiruchi chapter, has made a strong pitch for the expansion of Tiruchi airport to enable the operation of wide bodied aircraft.

It was one among five major thrust areas outlined in the District Development Plan-2015 released by the CII at a function organised in association with the Young Indians here on Saturday.

Promotion of district as a tourism centre, establishment of engineering and fabrication industrial park, improving road and rail infrastructure were among the other thrust areas identified.

Stating that Tiruchi airport stood next only to Chennai in terms of handling international passenger traffic, the CII said that the runway should be expanded to 12,500 ft to enable operation of wide bodied aircraft. Provision should be made to handle 1075 passengers’ capacity during peak hours.

Similarly, Tiruchi should be included in Bilateral Air Traffic Agreement so as to connect with Muscat, Sharjah, Kuwait, Doha, Riyadh and other foreign destinations, it said.
26/10/15 The Hindu

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Lord Vishnu's Garuda Sculpture Is Unveiled At Tirupati Airport, Becomes An Instant Hit

As PM Narendra Modi unveils the grand statue of Garuda at Tirupati Airport, one can't help but admire sculptor Arun Pandit's beautiful creation. Lord Vishnu's carrier and pacifier, the Garuda is no less than the epitome of divinity, believed to have led to the formation of two branches of the Sam Vedas - the Brihat and the Rathantara.
Pandit, who began his work on this Garuda installation on March this year, talks about its symbolism:
"Garuda, the celestial carrier of Lord Venkateswara has an inseparable link to Tirupati. I have created a sculpture which is symbolic in today’s world and times. My image shows that the man is troubled, and he wants to find peace, his soul is trying to get out of his body. I created 12 hands and spread them like the wings of the Garuda. The wings are done in black ebony shades and the bronze is textured to create a contrast. The image of man is half because he is deeply filled with angst. His face is hidden. I have been doing works like these for the past 10 years. I was showing that when a man finds peace he will take flight. In modern day terms this man is trying to reach his ‘Moksha’ (salvation)."
26/10/15 Anjali Bisaria/Indiatimes

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AOCC at Dimapur but not in metro airports

Dimapur airport is considered a vintage of the eighties despite a modest but modern terminal catering to an increasing number of air travellers but surprisingly, the Airport Authority of India (AAI) Dimapur has link-up with Airport Operations Control Centre (AOCC) that permits airlines, AAI officials, security agencies and other stakeholders to view live feeds on ground and air operations at various airports simultaneously.
Drawing attention on this aspect union civil aviation minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju expressed disbelief, that India’s four major and ultra-modern airports at Delhi, Mumbai, Bangaluru and Hyderabad were not connected with the AOCC the absence of which, made these airports “extremely fragile and tenuous in terms of safety”.  In an exclusive interview to this Correspondent here today, the union minister said due to non-installation of AOCC in these heavily congested four metro airports the airlines and officials were unable to anticipate and prepare for flight delays and disruptions and thus making these airports extremely at high risk to flight chaos.
AOCC is considered the main nerve centre at airports to ensure smooth schedules for flight take-off and landings and thus prevent any mishap. AOCC operates crucial flight information, manages aerobridges, check-in counters and baggage ramps which are crucial in avoiding any unwanted situation or even mishap.
26/10/15 Nagaland Post

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State to sell forest products at airports, stations

Mumbai: Ayurvedic and medicinal products made from forest products across the state are all set to compete with Baba Ramdev’s Patanjali products. A first-of-its-kind shop recently started in Nagpur under the ‘Jan Dhan Van Dhan Yojana’ which was started by the Maharashtra forest department has sold products worth more than Rs 2 lakh within 25 days.
Encouraged with the sales, the government is considering installing these shops at every airport and at every railway station across the state.
According to an official from forest department, it was discussed in a meeting that if yoga guru Baba Ramdev can capture the Ayurvedic medicines market, then even the forest department should take some initiative and use traditional knowledge to make medicines from forest produce.
State forest minister Sudhir Mungantiwar said the tribals have knowledge of medicinal shrubs and leaves. “We have never heard of a tribal dying of heart attack or suffering from diabetes or blood pressure. Even if they get injured, they use leaves of some trees and the next day it is completely cured.”
26/10/15 Vivek Bhavsar/Asian Age

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New bookstore, more food outlets at Indore airport soon

Indore: Passenger amenities at Devi Ahilyabai Holkar Airport, Indore would get a facelift in the coming months with improved facilities at waiting lounge, book store and more food choices.

According to the airport officials, a meeting was recently organized in which 29 airport directors with Airports Authority of India, chairman in which it was decided that the Indore airport would have a new bookstore and increase the food outlets.

"We do not have a book store for waiting passengers. Likewise in the waiting area there is no television. Therefore, AAI planned to provide book store and install LED televisions inside the airport premises," said an official at the airport.

New projects are expected to start within six months, said officials.
26/10/15 Times of India

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Dept may use Illegal buildings near airport

Pune: The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has completed more than 25% of the survey of unauthorised buildings around key defence establishments in Lohegaon and plans to finish the work by year-end.

The authorities are also considering the option to use these buildings as residential facilities for defence officials.

In June this year, the Bombay high court directed the PMC to pull down illegal structures around the aerodrome. The high court bench of Justices Abhay Oka and Anil Menon also directed the civic body to carry out a survey of illegal constructions in the area.

A committee comprising the city engineer and officers nominated by the Air Force Station, Lohegaon, has been carrying out the survey. The committee has been given six months for the work. A hearing of affected persons also has to be conducted before the buildings are demolished."The groundwork is going well. We will finish our work by the December-end deadline," a PMC official said, requesting anonymity.
26/10/15 Times of India

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MoD approves induction of women as fighter pilots

New Delhi: The Ministry of Defence has approved the induction of women into the Fighter (Combat) stream of the IAF.
This progressive step is in keeping with the aspirations of Indian women and is in line with contemporary trends in Armed Forces of developed nations. Since their induction into the transport and Helicopter streams of the IAF, their performance has been praiseworthy and on a par with their male counterparts. Inducting women into the fighter stream would provide them with an equal opportunity to prove their mettle in combat roles as well, a government statement said.
The first women pilots would be selected from the batch which is presently undergoing flying training at Air Force Academy. After successful completion of ab-initio training, they would be commissioned in the fighter stream in June 2016.
Thereafter, they would undergo advanced training for one year and would enter a fighter cockpit by June 2017.
25/10/15 New Kerala.com

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Maintenance of Chennai airport to be outsourced to private players

Coimbatore: Civil aviation secretary Rajiv Nayan Choubey on Saturday unveiled the plans to outsource maintenance of the Chennai airport to private contractors, in a bid to make it a world-class facility with improved ambience and hygiene levels.

The announcement comes close on the heels of a study by a travel website, The Guide to Sleeping in Airports, listing Chennai International Airport as one of the worst airports in Asia.

During his short visit to the Coimbatore International Airport on Saturday morning, the civil aviation secretary attributed the current condition of the Chennai airport to the ongoing extension works there. He said civil aviation ministry was likely to outsource maintenance of the Chennai airport to private contractors in a year.
25/10/15 Times of India

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15-acre defence land for air passengers' comfort

Pune: More parking and a multi-storey building for passenger amenities will come up on 15 acres of additional defence land on the eastern side of the civil airport in Lohegaon.

Airports Authority of India (AAI) has been sanctioned the land on a 30-year token lease rent, Union minister for road transport and highways Nitin Gadkari on Sunday.

Air passengers can hope for better services in the coming months as the has been sanctioned 15 acres of additional defence land at eastern side of existing civil airport.

He was visiting the airport for the MoU between the Indian Air Force (IAF) and AAI which will now submit a detailed plan on land usage to the ministry for approval.

"I am not stopping at 15 acres. We are trying to get 4 to 5 acres more. As things stand at present, the capacity of the expanded airport will be 2-3 times more. The AAI officials have been asked to submit a detailed project, but the inclusion of an underground parking and construction of a multi-storey building for passenger amenities is a great idea for space management," said Gadkari.
26/10/15 Times of India

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Coimbatore Airport gets wi-fi connectivity

Coimbatore: Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) and Quadgen Wireless Solutions have started providing high speed wi-fi connectivity at the Coimbatore International Airport. Secretary for Ministry of Civil Aviation R.N. Choubey launched the facility on Sunday.

Commuters and visitors could access the internet using their laptops and smart phones from anywhere in the airport for the first 30 minutes with download speed of about 5 Mbps. The free access could be availed three times per device (laptop or smart phone) in a month. On completion of free usage, users will be directed to a secured payment gateway to pay for the usage.

Users could buy usage time for 30 minutes for Rs. 30, 60 minutes for Rs. 50, 120 minutes for Rs. 90 and 24 hours for Rs. 150. Recharge coupons for the connectivity would also be soon made available at select outlets at the airport.

About 400 users could make use of the facility simultaneously, BSNL officials said.
26/10/15 The Hindu

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Pune airport boundary expansion gets ministry's nod

Pune: A long-pending proposal to expand Pune airport's boundary RPT boundary for better operational capacity has got nod of the defence ministry which has agreed to stretch it by 15 acres, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said today.
After a meeting with Pune district and Air Force officials here, Gadkari told reporters that the proposal for expanding Pune airport's boundary RPT boundary which he had been pursuing, had received approval from Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar.
26/10/15 PTI/Statesman

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Ahmedabad airport on smuggling alert

Ahmedabad: Internationals airports across the country , including Ahmedabad, have been put on alert to check gold smuggling which is expected to rise during the forthcoming festivals like Diwali, and marriage season.
According to sources, Customs officials have been asked to minutely scan suspects and commercial consignments to check smuggling.

"The officials fear that the upcoming festive season and marriages solemnized between November and February will push the demand for gold, giving rise to smug gling," said a source.

"Customs officials are scanning all suspects, particularly passengers on flights coming from Middle East and South Asian countries, to check smuggling. Ahmedabad airport is used as an alternative by carriers and smugglers so as to escape intense scrutiny . But here too, the vig il has been intensified," add ed the source.
26/10/15 Times of India

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Flight operations at Jammu airport resume

Jammu: Flight operations to Jammu airport resumed on Saturday after the Indian Air Force (IAF) withdrew its notice to airmen (NOTAM).

An official at the Jammu airport said the matter was taken up by the civil aviation ministry with the defence ministry on Friday after which the IAF withdrew the NOTAM it had issued on the same day, and resulted in suspension of flights to and from the airport.

The notice said the runway at the airport did not have the required load-bearing capacity because of which only those planes should operate to and from the airport that can fly with low-loads.

"The IAF NOTAM has been withdrawn and it has been decided that re-carpetting of runway would be started in a phased manner," an official said.
24/10/15 IANS/Times of India

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Jammu flights curtailed, over 2,500 flyers hit

New Delhi: Jammu was cut off aerially from the rest of the country on Friday, a day after Navratra got over and there was a huge rush of pilgrims flying in and out of the temple town.

The total number of Jammu-bound flyers stuck at airports across the country and those flying out of Jammu in the 16 flights that were to operate on Friday was estimated at 2,500 by aviation authorities.

Tests conducted by the Indian Air Force (IAF), which manages air traffic control at this defence airfield, found that the load-bearing capacity of Jammu runway had deteriorated.

On Thursday, IAF had issued a notice to airmen (Notam), which meant airlines could not fly heavy planes like the Boeing 737s and Airbus A-320s to Jammu up to January 14, 2016.

Since these are the mainstay of domestic flight operations, none of the 16 flights by private airlines supposed to land in Jammu on Friday and then take off from there could operate. A GoAir aircraft took off from Delhi but was diverted to Srinagar. Only two Air India flights operated on old A-320s with a different landing gear inducted in late 1980s when the country had small and weak runways.
After the absolute chaos on Friday, airlines approached aviation secretary R N Choubey and Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) chief M Sathiyavathy as lakhs of passengers are booked to fly to and from Jammu. Choubey took up the issue with defence authorities and IAF withdrew its Notam on Friday evening.

But, safety fears over Jammu, long known to be India's most unsafe runway along with Patna, have grown after the IAF warning.
24/10/15 Times of India

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Runway grounds flights at Jammu

New Delhi: On Friday, 30 flights to and from the Jammu airport were cancelled, stranding as many as 2,500 passengers. This followed an alert received by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) this week that the runway at the airport wasn't sturdy enough to carry heavy loads. The DGCA advised airlines to operate with significantly less overall load, following which all private airlines decided to cancel their flights on Friday.

The alert was withdrawn on Friday evening.

The Indian Air Force (IAF), which maintains the runway at the Jammu airport, had detected the issue on October 7.

DGCA chief M Sathiyavathy told Business Standard, "We got the information only on Wednesday. Therefore, the airlines were informed accordingly." Asked whether the IAF had given an explanation for the delayed alert, she said, "We got the information from some other source."
Government sources said after conducting a survey, the IAF had found the load-bearing capacity of the runway at the Jammu airport had decreased significantly. Subsequently, it reduced the pavement classification, meaning the runway would be able to handle a lower aircraft load.
D K Gautam, the Airports Authority of India (AAI)'s director at the Jammu airport, said, "We came to know about the issue only on Friday morning. We should have been informed earlier."
24/10/15 Somesh Jha/Business Standard

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Air China to end Mumbai-Shanghai service, to connect India with Beijing

Chinese flag carrier Air China has decided to discontinue Mumbai-Shanghai services from October 25 and instead connect the India metropolis with Beijing.
For the airline, this is the first direct flight to Beijing from Mumbai, where it will be deploying a wide-body aircraft, Airbus A330-300, which can carry more than 300 passengers.
Earlier, the airline was using a narrow body aircraft, an A319, to connect Shanghai with Mumbai, according to a statement from the GVK Group-run Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA) today.
This is the first direct flight between Mumbai and Beijing for the Chinese carrier, a Star Alliance member which earlier used to fly to Shanghai via Chengdu. Air China could not be contacted immediately.
The first arrival from Beijing (CA-889 flight) will be at 0100 hrs and the first departing flight from Mumbai (CA-890) at 0230 hrs on October 25.
23/10/15 PTI/Daily News & Analysis

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Refuelling at Kangra airport soon

Kangra: Union Minister for Civil Aviation P Ashok Gajapathi Raju today said for the low fare, the state government should come forward with subsidy on the pattern of Jammu and Kashmir, states of Northeast and Andaman and Nicobar Island.
He was talking to mediapersons on his arrival at the Kangra airport. The Union minister was here to inaugurate the central air-conditioning system of the Kangra airport. Besides he inaugurated the VIP lounge.
He said the Centre had no role to play in bringing down the airfare and there was neither a provision nor any budget meant for subsidising the airfare to the hill states. He said, “Himachal can provide the subsidy on airfare and no body is stopping the government from doing it.”
He, however, said the refuelling facility would start at the airport which was under process.
23/10/15 Tribune

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Airports Must be Developed on PPP Mode, Says Modi

Tirupati: The tourism industry is not only the fastest growing industry in the country but is also providing livelihood to a large number of people, including the poor, according to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He said this while inaugurating the new international terminal building of the Tirupati Airport at Reniugunta, near here, on Thursday.

Stating that all the airports in the country should be developed further through the private public partnership (PPP) system, he hoped that the Tirupati airport would now see more footfall of the overseas devotees of Lord Venkateswara.
24/10/15 T Sudhakar and Y Sravan Kumar/New Indian Express

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Air China to start Beijing-Mumbai flight, end Shanghai service

Mumbai: Chinese flag carrier Air China has decided to discontinue Mumbai-Shanghai services from October 25 and instead connect the India metropolis with Beijing.

For the airline, this is the first direct flight to Beijing from Mumbai, where it will be deploying a wide-body aircraft, Airbus A330-300, which can carry more than 300 passengers.

Earlier, the airline was using a narrow body aircraft, an A319, to connect Shanghai with Mumbai, according to a statement from the GVK Group-run Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA) today.
This is the first direct flight between Mumbai and Beijing for the Chinese carrier, a Star Alliance member which earlier used to fly to Shanghai via Chengdu.
23/10/15 PTI/Economic Times

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Delhi International Airport contracts Enerparc Energy for 5.7MW solar plant

Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) has put in an order for Enerparc Energy to set up a 5.7MW solar plant and perform O&M services over ten years at T3 terminal.

This is a repeat order following Enerparc’s successful 2.1MW solar installation for DIAL near the runway, which was commissioned in January 2014.

The new project will be spread over 10 hectares.

Enerparc has already installed 270MW of solar projects on runway side of airports worldwide.

Santosh Khatelsal, managing director, Enerparc Energy, said: “We have also commissioned a 5MW solar project at Hyderabad International airport and these three large-scale solar airport projects we have built and are operating is a testimony to our expertise and technical skills in understanding both aviation specific needs and solar expertise."

Enerparc is in discussions with several airport authorities in India over potential solar projects.
23/10/15 Tom Kenning/PVTECH

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KIAL Looks Sunward for Power Needs

Thiruvananthapuram: Taking cue from the Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL), the Kannur International Airport, which is nearing completion, too, is looking sunward to meet its electricity needs.

The initiative will begin in a small way with a one-megawatt (MW) project near the airport terminal, but a much bigger project is on the cards, and it will be implemented once the airport commences commercial operations, officials of Kannur International Airport Ltd (KIAL) said.  KIAL has already invited EoI for the 1-MW project, which will meet some of its internal power needs. This first step in the solar way is expected to cost the airport Rs 4 to Rs 5 crore.

“We are also planning a joint venture project, either with the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) or some other power sector institution, for setting up a much bigger solar power project on airport land,” KIAL managing director G Chandramouli said.
24/10/15 Tiki Rajwi/New Indian Express

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Airport arrest limit at baggage worth over Rs 20 lakh

New Delhi: Now a person flying from abroad can be arrested by customs for outright smuggling or mis-declaration of baggage at airports only if the value of goods is over Rs 20 lakh against the earlier threshold of Rs 5 lakh.
As per current rules, a person can pay a fine for any undeclared or mis-declared baggage of a value up to Rs 5 lakh. If the value of baggage is beyond this limit, it attracts prosecution or arrest. The Centre has now raised this limit to Rs 20 lakh.
However, there will be no lower limit for arrest and prosecution in the cases of smuggling of fake Indian currency notes, arms, ammunitions and explosives and endangered species.
The monetary limits for arrest and prosecution have been revised substantially upwards by the Centre on Friday to ensure that these powers are not used against small and medium businesses.
The limits, in case of offence of evasion of tax or wrongful utilisation of input tax credit in case of central excise and service tax, have been revised to Rs 1 crore from Rs 25 lakh and Rs 10 lakh respectively. In case of evasion of tax under the customs act, the limit has been revised to Rs1 crore from `10 lakh in case of evasion of tax by wrongful availment of exemption or duty drawback.
24/10/15 Asian Age

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CIAL's Winter Schedule of Flight Services

Kochi: The Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL) has announced the winter schedule of flight services for the period between October 25 and March 26. There has been considerable increase in the international flight movement from the airport in the winter schedule when compared to the summer schedule, said CIAL authorities.

 The schedule will feature a total of 1,096 flight movements, both international and domestic, from the airport in a week while it was 1,064 services until this week. But the domestic flight movements have dipped to 504 from the existing 531 in a week. The increase in flight movements in the winter schedule were mainly in the international sector which rose to 590 from the existing 533 services in a week, said CIAL authorities.
24/10/15 New Indian Express

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GFDO irked by Javadekar’s statement on Mopa EC

Panaji: Union environment, forests and climate change minister Prakash Javadekar's recent announcement of granting environment clearance (EC) to the Mopa airport project even before the environment appraisal committee (EAC) meeting, shows that he has lost sight of his job of protecting the nation's environment, said members of Goans for Dabolim only (GFDO).
Speaking to mediapersons, the GFDO criticized Javadekar for his unilateral and high handed behaviour, stating that a statement he made during his visit to Goa is a blatant interference and flies in the face of democratic processes.

"Mopa comprises rich and invaluable forests, wildlife, agricultural lands and perennial springs on the plateau," GFDO convener Fr Eremito Rebelo said. "Javdekar should not serve vested interests who have bought huge lands in the Pernem taluka of Goa and in the Sindhudurg district in Maharashtra," he added.

"The minister further violated all norms by chairing the EAC meeting, as reported in the media. This displays his lack of concern for Goa's already beleaguered tourism industry or the 10,000 poor Goans who will be directly displaced by the project, and his abject obedience to the needs and demands of private profiteers," Rebelo said.
24/10/15 Times of India

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Businessman arrested at IGI Airport for creating ruckus

New Delhi: A 30-year-old UK-based businessman was arrested at IGI Airport here for allegedly creating ruckus in a flight and also misbehaving with a female staff member, police said today.

The accused, Sarabjeet Singh Cheema, was allegedly drunk and tried to unlock the aircraft's door but when the crew tried to stop him, he allegedly created a ruckus, a police official said.

Cheema later turned out to be UK citizen. He was on his way to meet his relatives at Chandigarh and was supposed to change flight from the IGI Airport here, the official said.
23/10/15 PTI/Business Standard

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2 Held for Smuggling Gold Worth Rs 88 Lakh at Delhi Airport

New Delhi: Two persons have been arrested for allegedly trying to smuggle into the country gold valuing about Rs. 88 lakh at Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) in Delhi.

A man was intercepted by customs officials on Wednesday after his arrival from Dubai. Detailed examination of the baggage of the passenger resulted in recovery of gold strips coated with silver colour metal total weighing 1.02 kg, concealed in the transformer of a music system, a press release issued today by the customs said.

In another case, the customs official recovered foreign origin gold from a passenger who had arrived from Mumbai on Tuesday.

"Detailed examination of the passenger in person resulted in recovery of foreign origin gold, weighing 2.5 kgs having market value of Rs. 68.13 lakh concealed in inner pocket of his pant," it said.

Both the passengers were arrested and the gold valuing about Rs. 88 lakh was seized. In a related development, international airports across the country have been put on alert to check gold smuggling which might rise because of forthcoming festivals like Diwali and marriage season.
23/10/15 PTI/NDTV

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2 Indians arrested for smuggling people into the US

New York: Two Indians have been arrested in the US for their alleged involvement in smuggling people from India into America via Thailand.

Nileshkumar Patel, 41, and Harsad Mehta, 65 appeared in federal court on Thursday to face charges that they conspired to use commercial airline flights to smuggle foreign nationals into the United States, US Attorney Paul J. Fishman said.

The two are charged by criminal complaint with one count of conspiracy to bring in and harbour aliens.

In addition, Patel is charged with six counts and Mehta is charged with four counts of smuggling foreign nationals into the United States for private financial gain.

They were arrested a day before by special agents of the US Department of Homeland Security when they arrived at New Jersey’s Newark Liberty International Airport.

The conspiracy charge carries a maximum potential penalty of 10 years in prison and each substantive charge of smuggling carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison.
23/10/15 PTI/The Hindu

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