HAL keen to retain domestic airport

When Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) project was launched, State-owned aviation major Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) was ready to close its airport for domestic air traffic to shift to BIAL. However, the aviation boom and the air traffic it has generated have resulted in a U-turn in the Defence establishment's thinking. HAL is now keen on retaining its airport. The rationale: The Devanahalli airport will not be equipped to handle a projected annual passenger traffic of over 10 million, and the HAL airport can take care of the spillover.
The passenger traffic at the HAL airport has grown by 25 per cent in the last five years — a stupendous growth. "The growth would have been much more if we had not stemmed the increase due to non-availability of parking and terminal space. With this kind of growth, there is bound to be a spill over from Devanahalli. In the interest of the city and its people, HAL Airport should be retained," the company's managing director, Bangalore Complex, A.K. Saxena, told The Hindu.
14/06/07 Rasheed Kappan/The Hindu

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Categories: Airports Jun 2007