Telengana government focuses on new airports

Hyderabad: The Telangana government is focusing on new airports in the state. Although Kothagudem in Khammam district tops the list of the state government priorities in this regard other districts such as Adilabad, Warangal and Nizamabad are also under active consideration.
Khammam: The state government commissioned RITES Consultancy of Gurgaon for the pre-feasibility study for an airport at Punukuduchelka village in Kothagudem mandal of the district. The firm on it behalf did a research on the weather conditions of Punukuduchelka in the past five years. After due consideration of several other factors it concluded that the land in the area was not cultivated, it does not fall under restricted airspace of the defence authorities and is in good proximity to major industries.
Following this report submitted by RITES in November last year, the State government ordered a 'Techno Economic Feasibility' study of the region. The study will cover aspects such as potential air traffic, soil conditions, potential impact on environment, engineering challenges and financial considerations. The Telangana is expected to take a final decision on the airport at Kothagudem once the Techno Economic Feasibility report is received by it. Following this it might submit a formal request for the airport to the Central goverment.
31/01/16 Sakshipost

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DGCA inspector visits Kannur airport site

Kannur: An official of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) visited the Kannur International Airport project site near Mattannur on Saturday for inspection of facilities mandatory for giving clearance for trial landing scheduled to be held in February.

DGCA Aerodrome Inspector Y.V. Subramanyan visited the site and inspected the facilities including the runway as part of giving the clearance. Trial landing will be held only if Kannur International Airport Limited (KIAL) has been granted clearance by the DGCA. The Aerodrome Inspector also examined the safety norms set for giving the clearance.

KIAL officials said that all requirements for getting DGCA clearance for trial landing have been met.

They also said that 2,400-metre runway has already been completed for the trial landing. The actual length of the runway will be 3,400 metres. The completed portion of the runway is also marked for trial landing and take-off.
31/01/16 The Hindu

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Aerodrome inspector from DGCA examine KIAL site

Kannur: An Aerodrome Inspector from Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) , New Delhi, visited the Kannur International Airport Limited (KIAL) site in Moorkhanparambhu near Mattanur in Kannur district to examine the site, today.. KIAL Managing Director Chandramouli told UNI, that DGCA Inspector examined the infrastructure like runway and terminals for trial landing expected in the first week of February. He said the DGCA official left in the evening.
30/01/16 UNI/Web India 123

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Airport at Kothagudem sought

Khammam: There is an imperative need to set up an airport at Kothagudem or a nearby place in the district to provide air connectivity to the industrial powerhouse of Telangana for ushering in all-round development in the State, said speakers at the annual meeting of the district Airlines, Rail and Bus Users' Association held at Gautaminagar in Aswapuram mandal on Friday.

According to a press release, several senior officials and employees of the Heavy Water Plant, Manuguru, KTPS, Palvancha, Sponge Iron Unit of NMDC Ltd., Palvancha, the ITC Ltd's PSPD unit, Sarapaka, Railways, TSRTC and other organisations were among those present at the meeting.

Highlighting the air passenger traffic potential of the Kothagudem-Palvancha industrial hub of the district, speakers at the inaugural session underlined the need for setting up an airport in the industrial powerhouse to spur economic growth.
30/01/16 The Hindu

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Bhogapuram International Corpn to develop 2 no frills airports

Hyderabad:  Bhogapuram International Airport Corporation Ltd has invited request for selection of developers for no frills airports at Dagadarthi in Nellore district and Oravakal in Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh.

The Andhra Pradesh government has decided to take up these two Greenfield airports for development under the public-private partnership mode. Towards this initiative, Bhogapuram International Airport Corporation, created by the State Infrastructure Department, has been appointed as the nodal body for development of these two airports in the State.
28/01/16  V Rishi Kumar/Business Line

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Poll ring in airport nod

New Delhi: The Akhilesh Yadav government has finally "accepted" the Centre's proposal to build a second airport near Delhi, sources in the aviation ministry said today, hinting at next year's Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh as the likely prod.

The sources said the Samajwadi Party regime's nod for an airport in Jewar, 100km southeast of Delhi in the National Capital Region, came in a recent letter to civil aviation minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju after more than a year of dawdling over the project.

They said the state, in its letter to Raju, had agreed to release for the airport around 2,500 acres acquired from farmers several years ago.

Junior aviation minister Mahesh Sharma, who had been rooting for the airport in Jewar - it is in Gautam Budh Nagar, his Lok Sabha constituency - confirmed the development.

"It's a matter of immense satisfaction for me that the Uttar Pradesh government has agreed to the airport project near Greater Noida," the minister told The Telegraph.
25/01/16 Sumi Sukanya/Telegraph

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1,390 acres sanctioned for greenfield airport

Nellore: Officials have swung into action for completing the land acquisition process for the greenfield airport at Damavaram village of Dagadarthi mandal by the end of March.

More than 1,390 acres have been sanctioned for developing the airport at Dagadarthi, nearly 30 km from Nellore city and close to the Chennai-Kolkata national highway.

It has been a long-pending project in Nellore district, what with the industry and trade bodies demanding it for better connectivity to bigger cities.

At present, people depend on the international airports in Chennai, Hyderabad and Bangalore.

The rapid industrialisation of the Nellore region, thanks to the presence of the Krishnapatnam port, has strengthened public demand for a full-fledged airport within the district limits.

“We have already convened a meeting of officials of all departments concerned. A meeting will be held with local farmers and land owners next month,” Joint Collector A. Md. Imtiaz said.
25/01/16 G Ravikiran/The Hindu

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No stake for Goa government in proposed Greenfield Airport

New Delhi:  The Goa government will not hold any stake in the proposed greenfield airport in Goa but will have board representation, with veto powers, in the company that builds and runs it, civil aviation ministry officials have said.

This is departure from the practice of state government's being part owners of the greenfield airports, such as those in Hyderabad and Bengaluru and one proposed one in Navi Mumbai. "So, the state gets the golden share in the project. Not fetching equity in the project means the state government will not have to put in any fund into the project," a senior ministry official, who did not wish to be named, said, adding that the Goa airport will be the first airport project in the country where the state government will not be part owner.

Golden share in a company gives control of at least 51% voting rights, especially when held by government.
25/01/16 Mihir Mishra/Economic Times

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Airbus Helicopters and Mahindra reaffirm ties

Singapore: Airbus Helicopters and Mahindra Defence have reaffirmed their partnership toward producing military helicopters in India.

The two companies have made “significant progress” since entering a joint venture in 2015, says Airbus Helicopters in a statement.

To affirm their cooperation, the two companies signed a “statement of intent” in the presence of Indian prime minister Narendra Modi and French president Francois Hollande, who is visiting India.

“Mahindra Defence and Airbus Helicopters have already initiated an industrial relationship to produce helicopter parts locally and are defining additional work packages to be industrialised in India which would facilitate the required rapid ramp-up in the case of a programme award to the joint venture,” says Airbus Helicopters.
25/01/16 Greg Waldron/Flight Global

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AAI plans to develop infrastructure at regional airports

New Delhi: With the public-private partnership (PPP) strategy over developing Kolkata, Chennai and Jaipur airports in limbo, Airports Authority of India (AAI) is looking towards regional airports to shore up its non-aeronautical revenue.

The plan is to develop city-side infrastructure in regional airports, with help from private players that will include building of hotels, carparks and other facilities.

RITES - the engineering company under the ministry of railways - will advise it on city-side development of 13 regional airports across the country.
"Thirteen regional airports, holding out promise of generating high revenue, have been identified and work has already started on developing city-side infrastructure," said an official from AAI.

The civil aviation ministry has, however, clarified that maintenance of the terminal building will not be included in the city-side development, ruling out any intent of privatising the airports. The process of identifying the land has already been done at Lucknow and Raipur airports, added the official.
20/01/16 Arindam Majumder/Business Standard

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Concerns raised over proposed airport

Khammam: Speakers at a meeting organised by the CPI (M) Kothagudem division committee at Punukuduchelka village in Kothagudem mandal on Tuesday expressed concern over the proposal to set up a Greenfield airport at the village, citing ‘socio-economic, environmental and livelihood’ issues.

Several speakers deplored that the move to establish an airport at the village, predominantly inhabited by tribal people, would tantamount to depriving tribal people of lands and livelihood besides violating the forest and tribal laws, according to sources.

However, they maintained that they were not opposing the airport, but only want it to come up at some other suitable site near Kothagudem, devoid of any issues.

The CPI (M) division leader Satyanarayana said the move to set up an airport at Punukuduchelka would not only displace several tribal families but also amount to violation of tribal acts.

It is mandatory to obtain the consent of tribal people of the Agency area for any such proposal as per the provisions of the Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Area (PESA) Act, 1996, he contended.
20/01/16 The Hindu

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Intra-state flight operations start today

Bhubaneswar: Chief minister Naveen Patnaik will flag off intra-state flight operations at the Biju Patnaik International Airport here on Tuesday.
The local carrier, Air Odisha, through an MoU with the government, has taken up the operation. In December, a three-member team from the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) conducted on-board airworthiness test and gave final approval for the operation.
"We will fly to Sambalpur with state government officials on the day of inauguration. From Wednesday, commercial operations will start. We are yet to start ticket booking on our website. For the first day of operation, people have booked manually by paying the tariff," said Air Odisha founder Santosh Pani.
The carrier has fixed Rs 2,499 as minimum tariff for the four destinations - Sambalpur, Jeypore, Jharsuguda and Rourkela - it will fly from here. Tariff will go up when demand increases. However, maximum tariff won't exceed Rs 5,000, Pani added.
19/01/16 Times of India

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CM Naveen Patnaik flags off Air Odisha flight service

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today flagged off the intra-state flight service offered by chartered carrier Air Odisha connecting four destinations in the state.

On its inaugural journey, the carrier took off to Sambalpur from Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA) here and would return to Bhubaneswar via Jharsuguda. The inauguration ceremony was held at the hangar of the old terminal of the airport at 11.15 am.

Air Odisha Aviation Pvt Ltd will begin flight service to Jeypore, Rourkela and Jharsuguda from Thursday, sources said.

It may be mentioned that the nine-seater plane has the capacity fly 11 passengers, including a pilot and co-pilot.

Earlier, the airlines had conducted trial runs to four cities – Sambalpur, Jeypore, Jharsuguda and Rourkela.
The service will be available six days a week except on Sundays. The Bhubaneswar-based private carrier is offering tickets as low as Rs 2,499 as inaurugal offer.
19/01/16 Odisha Sun Times

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Mopa airport builder to be finalised within 90 days

Panjim:  Stating that it would be mandatory for the bidder of the Greenfield International Airport at Mopa to provide employment training facilities to locals, Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar on Monday announced that the successful bidder for the project would be finalised within 90 days.
“Our prime condition to the successful bidder would be to provide training facility to the locals. For the time being, space would be made available at Pernem ITI,” Parsekar said, adding that government is willing to provide land in the nearby areas for setting up the training centres.
The State government last week issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) for Mopa airport to four shortlisted companies, with the last date for receiving applications being April 15.
19/01/16 Herald

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KIAL May Float Shares Worth Rs 30 Crore in the Market

Those who had spurned the chance to invest in the Kannur International Airport Limited (KIAL) might soon get a second opportunity. The KIAL management may float public shares worth Rs 30 crore in the market soon to generate additional funds.

KIAL is the second airport in the state being implemented under the Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) after the Cochin airport.
An investor will have to subscribe to a minimum 500 shares worth Rs 100 apiece. However, KIAL MD G Chandramouli told Express that the state government has not taken any such decision yet. “KIAL is looking into alternative investment options as per the board decision,” said Chandramouli. The project is expected to cost Rs 1,892 crore. The reluctance of Airport Authority of India (AAI) to increase its stake from the present 10% may have prompted the management to consider other sources of funding.
Capital of the company coming from the issue of shares has been fixed at Rs 1,000 crore. As per the documents on the KIAL website, the equity capital of KIAL has been stipulated at Rs 1000 crore with 26% earmarked to AAI. However, as per the status report of December 31, 2015, the AAI has invested only Rs 100 crore (around 10%), creating a shortfall of Rs 160 crore.
19/01/16 Unnikrishnan S/New Indian Express

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Sikkim may get an airport, indicates PM Narendra Modi

GANGTOK: Sikkim may get an airport soon with Prime Minister Narendra Modi giving an indication in this regard here today while promising to look into the various demands put forth by the state government, including grant of tribal status to leftover communities.

Addressing a conference of Agriculture Ministers of states here, he said an airport in the state will not only boost tourism but also help in quick transportation of Sikkim's organic flowers and other products to other states and global market.

Hailing the quality of flowers of the state, Modi said, "Sikkim grows some flowers with long shelf life. There are different fragrances. There is big global market for fragrance. They want organic raw material. If the flowers have to be transported, there is need for infrastructure. So, an airport needs to be built in Sikkim."
18/01/16 PTI/Economic Times

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Successful bidder for Goa airport will provide training too

Goa Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar today said the successful bidder for the international airport at Mopa in the state will have to train the local people for airport operations too.

"One of the main conditions that would be put before the successfully bidding company is that they will have to provide manpower training required for the airport," Parsekar said.

The government has issued Request For Proposal to four short-listed companies: GVK, GMR, Essel Infra-Mumbai and Voluptas Developers.

For the time being, the training can be conducted at Industrial Training Institute (ITI) at Pernem, the Chief Minister said.
18/01/16 PTI/Business Standard

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Coast Guard air enclave planned

The Indian Coast Guard is planning to set up an air enclave near the Puducherry Airport in Lawspet to boost aerial surveillance, Vice-Admiral H.C.S. Bisht, Director General of Indian Coast Guard has said.

Talking to reporters after paying a courtesy call on Chief Minister N. Rangasamy in his chamber in the Legislative Assembly on Saturday, Mr. Bisht said the Coast Guard was in consultations with the Puducherry Government for setting up the air enclave.

“We had some good discussions with the Chief Minister. The Coast Guard is also planning a Hovercraft port at Veerampattinam where we can base some of our hovercraft. The Hovercraft port is coming up on an extent of 35 acres and we have to resolve some issues. As of now we are concentrating on the Air enclave and hovercraft port projects,” Mr. Bisht said.

S.P. Sharma, Inspector General of Coast Guard, said that two hovercrafts would be berthed at the facility at Veerampattinam. The Centre has already earmarked two hovercrafts for the Union Territory.
17/01/16 S. Prasad And/The Hindu

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Land Acquisition Delay Hits Kannur Airport Expansion

Thiruvananthapuram: The delay in acquiring land for extending the runway and making approach roads is likely to affect the future expansion plans of the Kannur International Airport Ltd (KIAL).

Though the project was envisaged on 2061 acres of land, the delay in land acquisition has affected the project. As per the KIAL report, 785.45 acres of balance land is under acquisition.

Industry experts warn that the KIAL would meet the fate of the Trivandrum airport, which is struggling to find more land to meet its expansion plans.

The total length of the runway of the greenfield airport in the first phase has been restricted to 3,050 m. Only after acquiring 70 acres of land can the KIAL extend the runway to 3,400 m.

Faced with stiff opposition against land acquisition, Minister for Airports, Ports and Excise K Babu, on his visit to the airport in the first week of this month, had said that no further extension would be allowed.
17/01/16 Unnikrishnan S/New Indian Express

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International airport in Hisar on the cards: Haryana CM

New Delhi: Seeking to promote Haryana as a global destination for investment, Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar today said his government was taking steps to set up an international airport in Hisar which will cater to the need of the state's western districts.

After launching an e-biz portal to facilitate investment and a helpline in Japanese for investors, Khattar said the state's proximity to Delhi is an advantage and some of its southern districts are also close to the international airport in the national capital.

There are other districts in the north which are close to the airport in Chandigarh. "We have also begun moving forward so that there is a new international airport Hisar" in the western part of the state, Khattar said.
15/01/16 PTI/Economic Times

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