Hyderabad Airport

Authorities In Talks To Reopen Old Bangalore Airport For Commercial Use!

AirWhizzNov 03, 2018 No Comments

Authorities In Talks To Reopen Old Bangalore Airport For Commercial Use!

Aviation Insider

A decade after commercial flights moved from Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) airport to Kempegowda International Airport (KIA), authorities are in talks with Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) to reopen the airport for commercial operations.

The HAL airport was shut down in 2008 in the wake of a concessional agreement between the ministry of civil aviation and BIAL that no commercial airport would function within a radius of 150 km from the Greenfield airfield(KIA) for a period of 25 years.

HAL airport currently handles military aircraft and test flights besides chartered and VIP jets.

Managing Director and chairman of HAL, Mr. V Madhavan, has initiated talks with BIAL to reopen the airport. HAL plans to lease it out to a private bidder but will continue to operate the Air Traffic Control.

He also said that reopening of the old airport for commercial flights would not affect flight tests of military aircraft by the Indian Air Force’s (IAF) Aircraft & Systems Testing Establishment (ASTE) and DRDO’s Centre for Airborne Systems (CABS).

Reopening of the old airport would mean a revisit of the concessional agreement signed between BIAL and ministry of civil aviation.

When it closed, HAL airport had reported revenue of around ₹150 crore. It is small in HAL’s overall current revenue of around ₹18,000 crore which mainly comes from selling fighters, transport planes and helicopters to the Air Force.

KIA started operating in 2008 at Devanahalli, about 40 km north of the city’s old central hub. It is the country’s third busiest after Delhi and Mumbai’s airports. In almost ten years, its annual passenger traffic has doubled to 25 million during 2017, about 19% being regional or short-haul travellers.

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Delhi Airport Now Among The Top 20 Busiest Airports In The World!

AirWhizzOct 31, 2018 No Comments

Delhi Airport Now Among The Top 20 Busiest Airports In The World!

Aviation Insider

Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) in New Delhi, which is one of the fastest growing major airports over the last four years, is now on the list of the 20 busiest airports in the world.

According to Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL), it was expected and also predicted that the passenger traffic will reach 95 million in the year 2023 because the airport’s expansion plan is on schedule.

Here are a few interesting figures that make Delhi one of the fastest growing airports in the world:

  • As per the data reported by Airports Council International (ACI), the global body that is responsible to monitor global airport traffic, Delhi airport’s compound annual growth rate (CAGR) between the years 2014 and 2017 is 14.3%.
  • This growth rate is the highest amongst the airports handling minimum 40 million passengers per annum, which includes famous international airports like Incheon airport in South Korea (10.5%), Pudong Shanghai airport in China (10.4%), and Dubai airport in UAE (7.4%).
  • In fact, since 2014, IGIA has been among the top three in the world when it comes to passenger traffic growth.
  • In the year 2016, the highest growth of 21% was registered by IGIA as against global annual average passenger growth of 6.5%. This is due to the huge growth in domestic passengers, which is almost 20% in the last five years.
  • According to a report by DIAL, over the last four years, 12 new scheduled airlines and over 10 international sectors have been introduced.

The report added that now the focus of DIAL is on airport capacity enhancement, terminal infrastructure, increase in flights per day and addition of new domestic as well as international sectors.

To do this, DIAL is expected to get an investment of Rs 9000 Crores. This investment will enable Delhi airport to boost its capacity and handle 100 million passengers in a year.

Soon, IGIA will also become the first airport in India to have four runways. The construction of the fourth runway is expected to begin this year and the airport officials are expecting to commission the runway by next year. Interestingly, this new move will increase the capacity of the airport from 75 flights to 105 flights an hour.

 

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Soon Assistants Will Help You Sail Through The Airport!

AirWhizzOct 29, 2018 No Comments

Soon Assistants Will Help You Sail Through The Airport!

Aviation Insider

Air travellers in India will soon be able to avail airport service packages in which they can hire assistants to help them complete their airport journey.

These assistants will help passengers complete check-in formalities, speed them through security check and immigration, wait for their flight with them at airline lounges, and take to the boarding gate in a golf cart, even if they are travelling economy class.

Government officials have said that the Union civil aviation ministry is set to approve this new ‘meet and greet’ plan, under which airports across the country will hire a company for helping passengers, for a price that entitles them to these additional services.

Departing passengers will be received in the parking area and will be provided with assistance at every point till they board the plane. Similarly, those arriving will be received at the aerobridge.

Currently, there is no procedure to issue an airport entry pass to an outside person to facilitate passengers. Commercial entities, mostly hotels, are given commercial passes, but even then, they are allowed to receive passengers only from the Customs area. This proposal is to give all-area passes to employees of the ‘meet and greet’ company.

Only one company per airport will be given a license for the service, and the airport operator will have to set its own rates. The average cost is expected to be Rs 5000.

The porter service will continue, so will the wheelchair service provided by airlines for old or physically challenged. Many passengers opt for the wheelchair to avoid walking at long terminals. Those who can afford it will now be able to pay and use these add-on services

This service will not compromise security since the background of the employees hired by the company will be thoroughly checked.

This service will be helpful for those passengers who are old, first-time flyers or differently abled and are traveling alone.

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You Can Now Take A Direct Flight To Singapore From Guwahati!

AirWhizzOct 24, 2018 No Comments

You Can Now Take A Direct Flight To Singapore From Guwahati!

Aviation Insider

Changi Airport in Singapore has announced the launch of its 16th city link to India with the introduction of a new non-stop service between Guwahati and Singapore.

This new route marks the first direct connection between the Northeast and Singapore.

Druk Air, also known as the Royal Bhutan Airlines, has already started to operate two weekly flights from 29th September.

The introduction of this new service is expected to reduce travel time from almost 10 hours, including transfers, to 4 and a half hours.

Lim Ching Kiat, the Managing Director of Air Hub Development, Changi Airport Group, released a statement on Tuesday saying that they are pleased to launch the first non-stop service between Northeast India and Singapore with Druk Air.

He also went on to say that India is the third largest tourism source market for Singapore and one of Changi Airport’s key growth markets. The new link is expected to strengthen not only cultural and socio-political ties between the countries but also facilitate opportunities to enhance travel and trade practices.

Travellers from the Northeast can now tap into to expensive network of Changi airport which includes destinations in Asia such as Australia, China, Indonesia and Japan.

Last month, IndiGo Airlines launched direct flights from Calcutta and Tiruchirapalli to Singapore. Air India Express will also launch additional four-times-a-week services from Bangalore, starting from October 29.

India is Changi’s sixth largest market, registering more than 4.5 million passenger movements in the past 12 months, growing at 14% every year.

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TRAVEL ALERT: Mumbai Airport To Remain Shut For 6 Hours Today!

AirWhizzOct 23, 2018 No Comments

TRAVEL ALERT: Mumbai Airport To Remain Shut For 6 Hours Today!

Aviation Insider

Are you flying in and out of Mumbai today (Tuesday, 23rd October 2018)?

If yes, then brace yourself for flight delays as both the main and the secondary runways of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport will remain shut for operations for six hours, i.e. from 11 am to 5 pm, for repair and maintenance work.

The runways of the Mumbai airport will undergo maintenance and repair in two phases between October and February-March period.

During the shutdown period, around 300 flights will be affected per day. Flights which are scheduled to either take off or arrive between 5 pm and 8 pm are likely to be the worst hit.

National carrier, Air India tweeted about this situation asking passengers to visit the website/app and to contact the call center for details on rescheduled and cancelled flights.

Budget airline, GoAir, also tweeted about the same. The flights of other carriers are also expected to be hit in a big way.

On 4Th October, Mumbai International Airport Limited(MIAL) had released a statement saying that due to the maintenance work, both the runways 09/27 and 14/32 will remain shut for operations between 11 am and 5 pm on October 23.

They have also said that in the second phase, the maintenance and repair work on the intersection will be carried out between February 7 and March 30 (except on March 21) from 11 am to 5 pm on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

The primary runway of the airport has a capacity of 50 flight movements an hour against the declared capacity of 46, while the secondary one runway can handle up to 35 arrivals and departures in an hour. On an average, the airport handles around 1,000 flights a day.

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New International Terminal At Hyderabad Airport To Open On 23rd October!

AirWhizzOct 22, 2018 No Comments

New International Terminal At Hyderabad Airport To Open On 23rd October!

Aviation Insider

All international flight departures will take place from the Interim International Departures Terminal (IIDT) at Hyderabad Airport starting Tuesday, 10.30am onwards.

Airport authorities have released a press release , asking passengers to check with their respective airlines about their flight schedule, before they leave for the airport.

Passengers booked on Air India’s international flights AI 127, AI 952, AI 978, AI 988, AI 966 & AI 051 and travelling to domestic destinations ,also have to report to IIDT.

The IIDT is located adjacent to the Haj terminal and can be accessed from both Shamshabad and Srisailam sides of the airport’s main approach road.

Signage with directions to IIDT have been placed starting from the airport approach road. A dedicated free shuttle service has been arranged between the existing terminal and IIDT. It will be available at the arrivals ramp and will operate at regular intervals.

The IIDT is 2 km from the main terminal, and transit between the two takes about five minutes. Volunteers have been deployed at the parking spots and entrance to help the passengers for the first few days to avoid confusion.

The new terminal, which was launched on 10th October, is said to be equipped with new technologies including India’s first remote hand baggage screening facility.

Together with the new automatic tray retrieval system at hand baggage screening, will help security do conduct their baggage checks much faster, plus it will also help passengers since it will reduce their waiting time in the security line.

In case of any query, passengers have been advised to contact the following helpline numbers: 040-66546370; 040-66606660

 

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Airport Authorities To Set Up “DigiYatra” Kiosks At City Centers!

AirWhizzOct 19, 2018 No Comments

Airport Authorities To Set Up “DigiYatra” Kiosks At City Centers!

Aviation Insider

There is some good news for air travellers who want to make the use of Government’s “DigiYatra” initiative.

Air passengers who want to gain hassle-free and smooth access to airports will soon be able to verify their Digi Yatra ID at city centers & common marketplaces.

The Ministry of Civil Aviation is planning to set up kiosks at various city centers, Indian Railways stations and at other crowded places where passengers can verify the Digi Yatra ID.

These kiosks will help passengers verify their identity at the city centers and walk straight to the departure terminal.

To start using their DigiYatra ID at the kiosks, passengers will be required to undergo a one-time verification process to ensure that the ID is original.

According to an Airports Authority Of India (AAI) official, multiple checkpoints and separate facilities will be created by the AAI at crowded tourist areas, where the frequency of air travellers will be more.

Passengers travelling via air can get themselves an ID under the DigiYatra by providing details like their name, e-mail ID, mobile number and details of one approved identity proof. This ID can be then shared by the travellers while booking tickets. The airline company will then share the information, along with the Digi Yatra ID.

Passengers with a DigiYatra ID will have to undergo a one-time facial verification during his/her first travel. This verification will take place at the departure terminal of the airport. A security official or an airport authority will be present during the verification, in order to ensure that the traveller is not using a fake ID.

One the verification is completed successfully, the passenger’s facial biometric will be captured and stored in his/her DigiYatra ID profile. So the next time the passenger travels, their face will act as a boarding pass and they can complete their airport journey without ever taking out a ticket or ID proof.

If the passenger has chosen Aadhaar as an ID proof for creating the Digi Yatra ID, their verification will be valid for five years, else it will be valid for one year only.

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South India’s 1st “Airport Radio” Launched At Hyderabad Airport!

AirWhizzOct 17, 2018 No Comments

South India’s 1st “Airport Radio” Launched At Hyderabad Airport!

Aviation Insider

Passengers flying to/from Hyderabad Airport will now be greeted with music!

GMR  Hyderabad International Airport Ltd(GHAIL), the operator of the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, has launched an Airport Radio in collaboration with Radio Mirchi.

‘Mirchi Airport Radio’, which is South India’s first Airport Radio, has been launched under GHIAL’s signature #PassengerIsPrime programme.

According to a press release by GHIAL, Mirchi Airport Radio is a 24×7 custom-produced, exclusive airport radio, creating a melodious theme to enhance the travel experience of the passengers at the airport.

According to the CEO of GHAIL, Mr. S.G.K Kishore, the concept of airport radio is one of GHIAL’s many initiatives to improve the passenger experience. He hopes that the passengers will enjoy this welcoming and melodious feature that the Airport offers during their travel.

The airport and Radio Mirchi have co-curated the popular and chart-busting musical numbers with a mix of film and non-film (albums) in Telugu and Hindi languages.

Hyderabad International Airport handles over 55,000 passengers on a daily basis. Typically a passenger stays at the airport from 15 minutes to 3 hours depending on his/her travel.

Airport radio – Mirchi Hyd will offer the passengers a musical treat across the 1.2 lakh square metre expanse of the terminal building and delight them.

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