CH April 2008 by Newsline

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April 2008

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EDITOR-IN-CHIEF’S NOTE

Lost baggage or free air!

The Queen inaugurating the now-infamous Terminal Five at London’s Heathrow Airport

hen Tim Soong, an electrician from Kennington in the UK went to get married in Italy last year, British Airways lost his baggage. To add salt to his wounds, there was no compensation for the mishap. So when a bigger disaster engulfed BA after the opening of the grandiose Terminal Five at Heathrow, Soong went to town with a video on youtube that is getting huge hits on the iconic website. And many of those who are double-clicking in delight are passengers who have used the terminal and lost their baggage. And how has BA reacted to the catastrophe? Speedily and most efficiently. They sacked two long-serving directors with the company. “The departures follow the airline’s move to Terminal Five,” it said in a brief statement. “The airline is looking to appoint a chief operations officer to combine both roles.” Next, the airline postponed moving its lucrative transatlantic and long haul operations to the new terminal till June. All this after BA Chairman Willie Walsh had been asked if heads would roll over the T Five affair, and he had said: “If people want to assign blame for this, it comes to me.” Our gut reaction would be to say: “How very Indian.” Cynical as we are, we tend to see our brethren as being sloppy, unmindful of quality or global benchmarks and incapable of executing a complex engineering and architectural solution on time against international benchmarks. The Delhi Metro helped us overcome that lack of self-belief when E Sreedharan and his team delivered track after track before time and below costs. Now, both Hyderabad’s new airport at Shamshabad and the BIAL-built Bengalaru airport have only shown that this isn’t a flash in the pan. Okay, Bengalaru has been delayed by two months. But if you look at the sort of complex issues they had to resolve, it is a surprise that it’s only late by 60 days. As for Shamshabad, full marks to GMR for commissioning on time. So what does it tell us about work ethics? That we are better than what we are given credit for? That we are more efficient? Maybe all this, but in real terms it is the ability to operate in a free environment without the stifling presence of Big Brother (read Bharat Sarkar) in the background that is the catalyst to the infrastructure bloom. All right, Metro is in the public

CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

sector. But Dr Sreedharan has become such an iconic figure that it is his shadow that looms larger over segments of the sarkar! And next time any of you want to beat the Airports Authority, please remember that when the honourable MPs ask questions about the airports in Mumbai, Bangalore or Hyderabad, it is the ‘responsibility and duty’ of the AAI to get the information from GMR, GVK and BIAL and give it to Parliament! Anyway, to return to the Heathrow fiasco, Lindsay Hilsum, Channel Four’s China Correspondent has, in a devastating piece in the New Statesman, compared the just-opened Terminal Three at Beijing and the chaos at Terminal Five in London. “Rarely has the contrast between two political and working cultures been thrown into such sharp relief. Terminal Three is twice the size of Terminal Five, costs half as much and took a quarter of the time to build. More importantly, it works. The consultation for Terminal Five took nearly five years, longer than the entire Beijing terminal project. While London residents, environmental groups and anyone else who had a view was allowed to submit objections, the 10000 inhabitants of 15 villages flattened to make way for the Beijing terminal were simply told to pack their bags and resettle nearby. The authorities claim they were adequately compensated. To them, it is incomprehensible that in Britain, construction may be slowed or stopped because a small group of people fears for the future of the natterjack toad or the value of personal property.” “We may say democracy matters more than development, so inefficiency is tolerable. The 200 million-plus Chinese lifted out of poverty in the past quarter-century may disagree. As may those queueing at Terminal Five, wondering if their flights will ever take off. At least from Terminal Three, the planes run on time.” But in Beijing, the poor guys couldn’t wave the red flags. In Hyderabad, airport employees could threaten to go on strike and the Minister agreed to meet them! In London your bags go missing, but you can vent your spleen on youtube. Try that it China. The Tibetans just got a taste of what they can get in return!

Off the cuff

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Pleasures of a small airport Over the last couple of months, Cruising Heights has been reporting about the two new airports at Bengaluru and Shamshabad and the difficulties travellers have been facing to reach them simply because the connecting roads are not yet ready. Our airports at the metros are crowded. While there are people everywhere, there is a shortage of parking space — and that is not just at the entrance of the terminals but also at the authorised car parking areas. It is time indeed when we started thinking about small airports. In the US, for example, in the past 20 years, traffic volume has increased by 105 per cent in metropolitan areas, while road capacity has increased only 45 per cent. If roads seem much more congested of late, it’s because they are. What does these statistics about city traffic have to do with a choice of airports? The fact is that most major airports are in or near major cities; so, when you drive to and from the airport, you are very likely to find yourself in some of the worst traffic. By looking for flights to small regional airports on your next flight, you may be able to bypass the traffic to, from and around the airport. What defines a small airport? Taking a leaf out of the US experience, for one, parking right in front of the terminal — and often free parking. Additionally, there are often only one or two gates; in some cases there are half a dozen or so gates without sacrificing the small-airport feel and experience.

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contents THE COMPLEX BUSINESS OF p26 GROUND HANDLING The Airports Authority of India has recently received bids from several groups for ground handling services at airports. But the Government's policy of ground handling continues to be fraught and unless the loopholes are plugged, there is bound to be controversy, R Krishnan reports.

OFF THE RECORD

How Raghu Menon got the top job at AI: An inside account of how Thulasidas exited and how the Maharaja got a new boss. CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

NEWS DIGEST

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Air India has the monopoly for ferrying Haj pilgrims but of late, there have been murmurs of protest from a number of quarters. A detailed look at the factors involved in taking the pilgrims to Saudi Arabia.

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ARTICLES NEWS VIEWS EDITS INTERVIEWS CLIPPINGS TRAVEL & TOURISM PROFILES NEWS DIGEST

CHOCKS OFF

p12

R Krishnanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s monthly column on the trends in the Civil Aviation Ministry.

CRUISING HEIGHTS K SRINIVASAN Editor-in-Chief

TIRTHANKAR GHOSH Managing Editor

R KRISHNAN

Consulting Editor

AIR CARGO

BIPIN SHARMA

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Associate Editor

AALOK SRIVASTAV

Home-grown aircargo companies are keen to spread their wings and are now planning to explore world markets to beat competition from multinationals.

Copy Editor

BIRENDRA KUMAR Copy Desk

RUCHI SINHA PRADEEP JHA Layout Artists

BHART BHARDWAJ Art Director

H C TIWARI

Co-ordinating Photo Editor

JAYA SINGH Subscription

AAI SUPPLEMENT SNIPPETS

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Air India adds Haryana to its fleet. Jet Spice and Indigo expand network. An Indian becomes 15 millionth Miles and More member of Lufthansa. More Chinese tourists are coming to India. And a lot more...

GLOBETROTTING

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While the FBI is looking for a man who ran away with the moolah 30 years ago, Santa Monica residents in the USA have been opposing runway safety plans. Plus: a banana republic's threats to shoot down planes suspected of carrying drugs.

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The Airports Authority of India has done remarkable work in the Southern States. Apart from setting up Greenfield airports, the organisation has completely refurbished and redone several airports in the four states. An in-depth look at the rapid strides taken by AAI South of the Vindhyas.

BACK PAGE

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Aviation fans, get ready for Mira Nair's biopic about the legendary woman aviator Amelia Earhart that is being filmed in Canada and South Africa. CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

RAJIV SINGH

Gen. Manager (Admn.)

RENU MITTAL Executive Director

Editorial & Marketing office: Newsline Publications Pvt. Ltd. C-15, Sector 6, Noida 201 301 Telefax: +91-120-4257701-03 All information in CRUISING HEIGHTS is derived from sources we consider reliable. It is passed on to our readers without any responsibility on our part. Opinions/views expressed by third parties in abstract or in interviews are not necessarily shared by us. Material appearing in the magazine cannot be reproduced in whole or in part(s) without prior permission. The publisher assumes no responsibility for material lost or damaged in transit. The publisher reserves the right to refuse, withdraw or otherwise deal with all advertisements without explanation. All advertisements must comply with the Indian Advertisements Code. The publisher will not be liable for any loss caused by any delay in publication, error or failure of advertisement to appear. Owned and published by K. Srinivasan 4C Pocket-IV, Mayur Vihar Phase-I, Delhi 110091 and printed by him at Nutech Photolithographers, B-240, Okhla Industrial Area, Phase-I, New Delhi 110 020 Vol II No 12

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Why big birds?

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The large number of wide-body aircraft would not be sustainable by the Indian aviation industry for serving the domestic market. With the large capacity (through more airplanes) coming in, airlines are finding it difficult to reach a breakeven load factor. Bigger the aircraft, the fuel burnt would be more leading to higher operating cost. DINESH KESKAR, Senior Vice-President, Boeing Commercial Airplanes on the mad rush for aircraft in India.

LETTERS TO EDITOR

THE COVER STORY, Sunrise in the south (March ’08) provided a detailed analysis about the two new airports at Hyderabad and Bangalore. Indeed, the two airports will certainly usher in a new sunrise in the south and set the tempo for other airports. The credit must go to civil aviation minister Praful Patel who had the confidence in private developers. On their part, they ensured that the airports were readied on time. The same work — if it had gone to the babus — would not have seen the light of the day. However, though the airports are operational or will be shortly, only time will tell whether they are able to satisfy the expectations of the customers. Dipti Khatri, Bareilly March 2008

Rs 60

Illustrations: Rajeev Kumar

The cover story truly highlighted the features of airports of Hyderabad and Bengaluru in detail, though it lacked critical analysis. Nevertheless, the story managed to give the readers what they wanted: the salient features of the airports. The story also contained interviews of the who's who of the airports as well as fact sheets, which I am sure would help readers to have a brief peek at the functioning of the new airports. I only hope that the airports in the future would get the coveted status of being truly world class. Ram Singh, Jalandhar

The cargo story, Hyderabad Ready to fly (March '08) gave a perfect analysis of the coming of air cargo in the two new airports. Indeed, with the coming of the two new airports, the air cargo operations in India would get a major push. Interestingly, GHIAL would emerge as a cargo hub in India, having an initial cargo capacity of 100000 MT per annum. That's not enough, the airport would be handling IT-related products, perishable cargo, pharma and agro products, which would further entail betterment of these industries. Vinay Khare, Guwahati All correspondence may be addressed to Editor, Cruising Heights, C-15, Sector 6, Noida 201 301 OR mail to newslinepublications@rediffmail.com

Explanation

The losses were on account of capital related costs, which included interest, lease rentals and depreciation and the one-off expenses pertaining to rebranding. The airline said the increase in sales was largely because of the result of improved yield, which reflect the airlines’ repositioning as a high value carrier. Deccan CEO RAMKI SUNDARAM on the health of Simnplifly Deccan.

No poaching We have six ex-Sri Lanka pilots flying A330s. But they joined us quite some time back. Jet’s CEO, WOLFGANG PROCK-SCHAUER on the complaint that they are poaching Sri Lankan pilots.

Cargo issues

We are aggressively going behind cargo business. For that we are developing our own infrastructure at various ports, our own x-ray machines and other set up. Our aircraft can carry about two tonnes of cargo and we are operating about 120 flights per day, which means we can carry 240 tonnes every day. We are doing 60-70 tonne of courier every day, so we can carry about 180 tonnes more. SpiceJet Executive Chairman SIDDHANTA SHARMA on the foray into cargo.

Regional feed In a regional concept, the frequency is of importance. There are several untapped markets within India as less than one per cent of the country flies. Regional airlines will help stimulate air travel among a large portion of the non-flying population that has the potential to fly. Sensibly, the legacy carriers can then focus on their core routes. Regional carriers can even support by providing feeder traffic. ANKUR BHATIA, Executive Director, Bird Group, on the regional concept that he will promote through his airline.

CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

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In 2007, according to the Indian Embassy

Back to Hindi-Chini Bhai, Bhai rising: With trade and tourism between China and India growing, the number of Chinese tourists to India has been rising by 20 per cent annually. In 2006, China welcomed a total of 405000 Indian visitors. And in 2007, China broke through the levels of 40 million outbound tourists and 120 million international arrivals: China has emerged as the largest tourist source country in Asia.

COLD STATS

in Beijing, 51473 visas were issued to Chinese visitors, compared to 36150 in 2006. In particular the number of Chinese domestic private enterprisesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; visa applications to India increased rapidly. The Indian Embassy has started a new Indian visa application centre in Beijing, which is run by VFS Global Services. Over the next few months, 12 new visa application centres will be set up in different cities across China, all of which will be run by VFS Global Services.

Number of Chinese tourists to India

LOOKING GLASS

Where do you want to go today? Angrezi matters The other problem area is the lackadaisical approach among some pilots in the usage of the standard phrases in the cockpit. Aircrash investigations in the past have pointed out the need to adhere to these standard words. DGCA DG KANU GOHAIN on the poor English of many expat pilots.

Mantralaya message If he (Naresh Goyal) wanted Shanghai, he landed up there and stayed put till he got it. If he wants anything, he pursues it himself and doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t leave things to his lieutenants; for Mallya the airline is one of many. The difference will eventually show. An unnamed top ministry official quoted in Business Standard.

CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

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OFF THE RECORD

o, why was Raghu Menon finally handed the Air India gaddi? As usual, sources allude that he was “always in the frame” and it’s just that “everything fell into place this time around”. But that’s perhaps just a tenth of the truth. The fact of the matter is that Raghu Menon has always been a favourite with Mantriji, and it is also a fact that Vasudevan Thulasidas was on course for an unprecedented extension of a full year, as the top boss at Air India. In fact, the deal was more or less through. At least, that’s the feeling that

RAGHU

SIGNS IN Raghu Menon

V Thulasidas

Vishwapati Trivedi

T K A Nair

CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

everyone got. So confident was Thulasidas that he went off to Frankfurt for a meeting of the Star Alliance board. And when he was away, the change took place in Delhi. Fellow North-East officer (Nagaland, 1974), Menon was given a full three-year tenure at the top. It must surely have come as a bit of a shocker for the gentle, soft-spoken career bureaucrat, one of the few tobacco-loving chaps at Rajiv Gandhi Bhawan. So, why was Thulasidas not given an extension? Apparently, it was all because Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is averse to granting extension to any superannuating officer. In the last three months, he has said ‘no’ on three different occasions and he was clearly not interested in making an exception, despite the fact that Thulasidas had the formidable support of the PMO. In fact, at one time, because of this uncertainty, there was the probability of the top job being split, with Thulasidas being the Chairman and R K Singh as the Managing Director. But that wasn’t to happen because R K is far too junior in the pecking order and is still a JS (Joint Secretary), while the post requires an AS (Additional Secretary). Anyway, to cut a long story short, the selection panel did send its recommendations to the Ministry and the PMO that included Joint Managing Director Vishwapati Trivedi, Arvind Mayaram from the Ministry of Finance (he had the backing of Secretary Ashok Chawla, who did gently push for him) and one other candidate. Apparently, Praful Patel wasn’t too pleased with the choice. He has, for some inexplicable reason, not warmed up to Vishwapati Trivedi and said “no” to his candidature straightaway. He wasn’t for any of the others as well — including the several he is believed to have met informally. That the Prime Minister chose to still give him the opportunity to nominate someone of his choice, is a measure of the confidence that the PM has in him and the relationship that they share. As the stalemate continued, Principal Secretary to the PM, T K A Nair came calling on Praful. And that’s when Raghu Menon actually moved from the corner of the frame bang on to the picture zone, so to speak. What an irony! Here was a man who had actually withdrawn his application, being asked to accept the kursi! Now that he is the Minister’s choice and also enjoys the confidence of the Secretary, things should be smoother for AI. But, with a Rs 2,500 crore-plus loss, it’s going to be a long haul. No wonder, Raghu signed formally as AI’s CMD at 8.46 on March 31. It was an auspicious moment as well-wishers had suggested and Raghu choose to accept their advice. More about that next time.

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Welcome to Cruising Heights March 2008

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CRUISING HEIGHTS has been part of the Indian aviation scene for many years now. In this period, we have established a name for quality reporting and analysis on issues relating to every aspect of the aviation business. One of the first true aviation magazines of the country, CRUISING HEIGHTS was started with the idea of supporting professionals in the airline business to make informed choices on a variety of subjects—from ground handling to cargo to airport development—all of which are transforming the Indian aviation scene in mind-boggling ways. We also target the general reader—the educated Indian who is keen to be an informed Indian—to know what's happening in the aviation business.

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So, the magazine is professionally written in a style and manner for everybody to understand. Published twelve times a year, CRUISING HEIGHTS reports in depth on all facets of the aviation and aerospace environment in the country and also as events affect us from overseas. Dedicated news and regular feature sections in each issue on airlines, airports, policy and personalities.

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OFF THE RECORD

ZAIDI’S

GREAT

COMEBACK Nasim Zaidi

o, Dr Syed Nasim Ahmad Zaidi will finally get what he has wanted. A job in Civil Aviation, his karmabhoomi for the last eight years. Praful Patel has approved his appointment as the next Director General of the Directorate of Civil Aviation (DGCA), as a successor to Kanu Gohain who will complete his second sixmonth extension at the end of June. The erudite and lowprofile Zaidi was the Joint Secretary in the Ministry — he oversaw the first wave of modernisation and suitably RK impressed Mantriji — before moving as India’s representative to the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). Zaidi (batch of 1976, Uttar Pradesh cadre) will complete his three years in Montreal in October, but is likely to come back a few months earlier to make it simple for Rajesh Kumar Singh (batch of 1985, Manipur-Tripura) to take over from him. Singh will complete his five years of central deputation this summer and it would have required quite some dexterity to keep him in town till October. With Zaidi coming back a few months earlier to take over as the DG, it will be much easier for Singh to zip his way to Montreal. No praise can be too high for RK. What a performance? It must require skills of an extraordinarily high order to keep everyone happy all the time. He came when Rajiv

Pratap Rudy, a fellow Bihari was running the show. And the then Secretary K Roy Paul had a great equation with him. When Praful Patel came in and Ajay Prasad followed him some months later, Singh hit it off with both of them. He was Prasad’s favourite officer (no surprise, considering both are from St Stephen’s College) and Patel’s first choice to sort out sensitive bilaterals (the entire Gulf bilaterals were pushed through by our friend). Being on the boards of Air India and Indian Airlines Singh (pre the merger) also helped. Now, how many officers can boast of working with Mulayam Singh (when he was the Defence Minister), being friends with Amar Singh and Rudy and close to successive secretaries and ministers. For Praful, domestic considerations have clearly outweighed the opportunity of having Zaidi as the Secretary General at ICAO.That post falls vacant in spring and Zaidi could have been the choice. There are some who believe he was a wee bit junior for the job and the only reason Dr S S Sidhu got it some Kanu Gohain

years back was because he was Secretary at that time. But more than the prestige of that job, he wanted a trusted helmsman at ICAO and wanted to give RK a great parting gift. So what happens to Kanu Gohain? If Praful Patel’s track record is anything to go by, then this favourite officer of his will soon find himself another perch in civil aviation. What will be his job and how soon he will move in there is a matter of debate. Watch this space for an update. Gohain has given up several plum assignments in ICAO and elsewhere to focus on his present responsibility, despite being on extension. It’s now for Mantriji to do his bit. Ask him that and he turns around and says: “Have I ever let anyone down?” For the record, it may be mentioned that the IAS returns to DGCA after close to a dozen years. The last babu DG was Probir Sen (later CMD at Indian Airlines). Since then, it was a succession of internal officers (Kola, Satinder Singh and now Gohain) who have held fort. But why be surprised? After all, even the ICAO job was always a DGCA assignment till the civil services decided that they could do a better job.

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OFF THE RECORD

NEW OFFICE

BUT LITTLE WORK

ll that Rajiv Gandhi Bhawan now needs is an underground alley like the one they have in the Pentagon (what a comparison to connect the two wings of the Ministry across the road — AAI and the Ministry on one side and the DGCA and now the BCAS on the other!). Mantriji recently laid the foundation stone for the new block coming up in the GCA complex in a function that was well attended. But, will the BCAS have enough work to do by the time Mantriji is finished with them?

Actually, with the growth of civil aviation in the country, the BCAS should be one of the busiest. But that isn’t happening. Just the other day, they finally had their way when the Secretary finally told Joint Secretary K N Shrivastava that the guidelines laid down by BCAS shall continue to be in operation till further orders. The reason why the Secretary had to issue the executive order was because the inline baggage system at Nagpur Airport was being unnecessarily delayed, thanks to the JS poking his nose in a matter hugely technical. The

KHOSLA TAKES

CHARGE OF IATA

hen Robey Lal quit as the head of IATA (International Air Transport Authority)’s regional office in Delhi, the general feeling was that he would be succeeded yet again by someone who had excellent contacts in the government and could network seamlessly in getting things moving. Lal was an AAI veteran and fitted the bill perfectly.

V K Verma

Amitabh Khosla

So, it was no surprise when stories started doing the rounds that Lal was likely to be succeeded by V K Verma. However, it isn’t Verma, but Amitabh Khosla, the first Secretary General of FIA (Federation of Indian Aviation) who is moving to head this responsibility. Khosla has been a long-time favourite of former AI CMD V CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

airport’s new terminal building that is scheduled to be dedicated to the nation on Ambedkar Jayanti (April 14) is so far without an inline baggage system. Thulasidas. The two hit it off when Thulasi was the head of the CII committee on Aviation and Khosla the pointsperson on behalf of the confederation. When Thulasi became the first Chairman of FIA, Khosla moved there and it now seems that his mentor has played a key role in this double promotion in 18 months. Meanwhile, the news on Verma is that the former AI Commercial Director has decided to take a temporary break from aviation to relocate to Delhi and focus on beefing up the Badminton Association of India, of which is the president. In any case, with the Commonwealth Games just two years away, Verma has his plate full. The sportswallas want him to devote more time to sports administration but aviation continues to beckon. Which one does he look forward to now?

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COLUMN/CHOCKS OFF

Consistently INCONSISTENT

R Krishnan

The manner in which the Civil Aviation Ministry has gone about — from acquiring aircraft to enforcing the summer schedule — leaves many unanswered questions.

So, where will Air India find money to service its massive aircraft acquisition plan in addition to the finances it needs to fund the acquisition of 68 Boeing and 43 airbus aircraft that are scheduled to be delivered by end 2011 or early 2012? 12

ITH THE CHANGE of guard at Air India, talk of acquiring new aircraft by the carrier beyond 2012 has begun once again. Last year, it was widely believed that Air India would acquire up to 150 aircraft comprising mega carriers like the Super Jumbo A380, Just Jumbo Boeing 747-8, MCLRs like Boeing 777 and 787s, Airbus A350 series and A330200 series besides narrow body single aisle B737s or those from the A320 family. The former CMD of Air India V Thulasidas had even constituted a committee of 10 officials drawn equally from both the erstwhile Air India and Indian, to make the evaluation. Incidentally, both the aircraft makers had been doing the rounds of Air India headquarters at Nariman Point in Mumbai and even some presentations were made to groups of airline officials who at times numbered even 30 persons. After this tamasha, the then CMD formed a group from within and he was all set to sign an office memorandum constituting the 10-member committee. However, he did not sign the file as he was waiting for his own extension. The extension did not come and instead his junior IAS colleague Raghu Menon took over. The file was not signed and instead Thulasidas signed a file containing names of 33 officials who were to be promoted, transferred, etc on the last day of his in office. It now remains to be seen if successor Raghu Menon endorses the same file or goes through the entire process once again, before setting up his own committee. The delay has pushed the possible delivery dates by a couple of years. Meanwhile, finances of the merged entity, NACIL has taken another hit. While officially — for public consumption — it is being pointed out that Air India-Indian Airlines combine will record a loss of Rs 784 crore, insiders believe it may be much more. The Finance Director feels that the loss could be near Rs 2000 crore as he is forced to provision for the loss of revenue that Air India has been enjoying from its exclusive code-share arrangement with various airlines as CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

well as from royalties. As per the December 2004 installment of the civil aviation policy that brought in the mandatory five year rule of continuous flying to entitle a domestic carrier to fly foreign routes, codeshare/ royalty would end in three years. With that prospect so near, Air India’s finance department has informed that since this revenue stream would not be available from next year, it would be better to provision for it from this year itself. Or else, the loss could be even more massive next year. So, where will Air India find money to service its massive aircraft acquisition plan in addition to the finances it needs to fund the acquisition of 68 Boeing and 43 airbus aircraft that are

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scheduled to be delivered by end 2011 or early 2012? Neither Raghu Menon nor Air India Finance Director Chandrashekar know. As for the Ministry of Civil Aviation, it is as usual engaged in some dogfight. Look at the delivery schedules of Boeing and Airbus. According to industry experts, Boeing will not be able to take any more orders and deliver the redesigned and stretched Boeing 747-8 before 2012, 777s before 2014, 737s before 2015 and 787 before 2018. Similarly, Airbus will not be able to deliver A320 family before 2013, Airbus A330-200 before 2013, A350 before 2017. It only has the A380s for delivery which could perhaps be delivered by 2012, should Air India want to purchase them. Here, we need to look at the passenger load factor of Air India that, according to its new CEO Raghu Menon, has fallen to 67 per cent. This way both Boeing 747-8 and A380 will become excruciatingly painful for the state owned airline to fill up. The other aircraft, in any case, may not be deliverable just in time for 2012. I must say that by that same date, the finances of Air India could get into an even bigger mess. Air India may blame the high fuel cost for its misery. But the same high cost fuel has not deterred other international carriers from making profits. True, some foreign carriers have also been making losses and one of them — Alitalia — has even closed shop. In India, with the state’s life support ventilator, we can even accord immortality to otherwise dying entities, including airlines. Perhaps, it was not out of the

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blue that former Air India CEO Thulasidas told a Chennai meeting of the Aeronautical Society of India that Air India may divest 20 per cent of its equity to a strategic investor. Though officially no one denied that, I wonder if Raghu Menon who was till the other day Special Secretary and Financial Advisor to the Ministry of Civil Aviation before being appointed CEO of Air India, will be able to repeat the lines of Thulasidas. Since the tune is changing with an impending recession, the impact of which is already being felt with deceleration in passenger growth within India and outbound, I don’t think Menon will repeat Thulasidas’ song. Sometime ago, I heard that some brainy officials in Air India are now thinking of changing the specifications so that there is no need to look at either the American or French option (read Boeing and Airbus). They feel that other than a small battle for the big birds like the A380 and the comparatively smaller Boeing 747-8, there will be no need for MCLRs. As it is, Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines — that is launching its international operations from August 28, 2008 — have already booked similar aircraft. Why should Air India commit hara-kiri? So, the Maharaja feels it would be better off by taking the “Honey I shrunk” method and go in for the Canadian (CRJ) and Brazilian (Embraer) route. In a way, flying west to the US via Europe or to the east, Air India feels it will be able to bargain better, should it fly from Canada in the north to Brazil in the south or vice versa. The best judge, as usual, will be the Ministry of Civil Aviation. In any case, it took no note of the long overdue Summer Time Table of Air India that was released only a day before the schedule actually became effective in the end of March. However, the same Ministry of Civil Aviation has advised Kingfisher that it needs to go slow on its international forays beginning August 28, 2008 as by that time, only three months of the Summer Schedule will be left as it ends in November. Kingfisher, which earlier delayed accepting delivery of A340-500s for its non-stop Bangalore-San Francisco and Bangalore-New York flights, now feels, it will have to go into the winter schedule. The stick Ministry of Civil Aviation held out is: Should Kingfisher fail to honour its schedule, it may lose that particular route for two years. I don’t know if the same Ministry has ever held the official carrier responsible for cancelling or adding routes at the will of others! True, the Maharaja cannot be blamed as he is the first subject of Emperors ruling from Rajiv Gandhi Bhawan. It is not this government alone but all governments in the past have behaved in the same consistently inconsistent manner. (Veteran journalist and long time aviation watcher R Krishnan is Consulting Editor at CH. He can be reached at rkrishnanji@yahoo.com) CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

Sometime ago, I heard that some brainy officials in Air India are now thinking of changing the specifications so that there is no need to look at either the American or French option (read Boeing and Airbus) 13

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NEWS DIGEST

P Chidambaram

Praful Patel

Montek Singh Ahluwalia

Interesting airport

times ahead

INFRASTRUCTURE NEWS

he realisation has indeed been very late for an otherwise efficient UPA government. Everyone knew all along that the new airports being constructed at Hyderabad (Shamsabad) and

Bangalore (Devanhalli) will open shop much before the road/ roads leading passengers, crew and cargo to them are laid. Now that it has happened, and roads remain missing, the government is now changing its thinking process on develop-

Airport infrastructure body for Gujarat Gujarat, which boasts of the highest number of civilian airports in the country, is all set to get an airport infrastructure company on the lines of the Airports Authority of India (AAI). A recent spurt in air traffic â&#x20AC;&#x201D; both passenger and cargo â&#x20AC;&#x201D; to and from the state is said to be the reason behind the decision taken by the State government. Aimed at giving a push to the aviation sector in the state, the government has allocated Rs 3 crore for setting up the Gujarat Airport Infrastructure Company (GAIC). The company would be tasked with preparing a longterm infrastructure blueprint for the sector, keeping in Gautam Adani Narendra Modi mind present and future growth. The Adanis are one of the emerging aviation players in the state. Of the dozen-odd domestic and international airports in the state, seven are fully operational with daily flights to over a dozen destinations across the country. The seven are: Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Rajkot, Jamnagar, Bhuj, Bhavnagar, and Surat. While the Porbandar airport is ready for take off after the completion of a new terminal, the Mehsana airstrip was recently

ing new airports where old airports have to be closed down and/ or where another new airport needs to be built near the upcoming (first) new airport. As per the latest official thinking, all future new airports/ Greenfield airports or even the upgradation and modernisation of existing airports (GMR in Delhi and GVK in Mumbai) will be governed by a new policy. The committee on infrastructure at its meeting held first in November 2007, referred the Greenfield airports to a sub-committee comprising the Finance Minister, the Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission and the Minister of

given to a private sector company for training of pilots. Airstrips at Keshod, Junagadh, and Deesa could be upgraded depending on traffic requirements. In a related development, the department would also appoint a private sector agency to prepare a report on the aviation sector growth in the state. An allocation of Rs 1.23 crore has been made in the 2008-09 budget. According to the figures available with the Civil Aviation department, total domestic flights (aircraft departures) jumped by 24 per cent from 28007 flights in 2005-06 to 34738 in 2006-07. International flights from Ahmedabad showed an increase of 26 per cent from 3239 to 4100 in the corresponding period. During the same period, total embarking passenger traffic jumped by 4.4 lakh from 1201059 to 1641399, while the disembarking traffic registered a similar increase from 1166856 to 1579184.

AAI pays dividend of Rs 100 crore The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has paid Interim Dividend of Rs.100 crore (One hundred crore) to the Government of India for the financial year 2007-08. The cheque was presented to the Minister of Civil Aviation by Dr K Ramalingam, Chairman, AAI, in the presence of Secretary Civil Aviation, Ashok Chawla, and other senior officers from the Ministry of Civil Aviation and the AAI. AAI has undertaken a number of projects to improve airport infrastructure in the country in view of burgeoning civil aviation sector. In financial year 2007-08, i.e. by March 31,

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NEWS DIGEST Civil Aviation. The trio would consider the issues regarding approval of Greenfield airports within 150 km of existing airports and streamlining of the approval process involving multiple entities. Since then, the sub-committee has recommended a detailed approval mechanism for airports falling within and beyond 150 km of existing airports. With this, a new civil aviation policy, which will serve as a guiding post for creating of all future Greenfield airport projects, will go to the Union Cabinet by end-April or early-May 2008. There will be a single window clearance for setting up airports. The urgency to set up this committee and also get the new policy approved stems from the fact that the UPA government courted Mayawati's BSP (it rules UP) for getting elected its presidential candidate, Pratibha Patil. During the courtship days it also agreed in principle to clear the Greater Noida airport being planned by UP government in PPP mode. It was at this stage, GMR, which is modernising Delhi airport, objected to it, stating, it was against the contract to have another new airport within the 150 km range. Notwithstanding the right to first refusal, GMR said its OMDA with the government specifically stated that the modernised Delhi airport will be able to saturate only by 2026. By allowing new airport at Greater Noida, GMR will lose heavily

and hence the centre should compensate it. Faced with this serious legal tangle, government has set up yet another committee which includes legal brains like Kapil Sibal, and the Law Ministry. Irrespective of what will happen, the Committee on Infrastructure has decided to go ahead with it. By the same yardstick, what will happen to the old airports at Hyderabad and Bangalore? After all, their case is only a reverse image of what is being sought to be done at Greater Noida. For starters, we are told that AAI will be asked to set up its ATC training centre at Begumpet and strengthening of Indian Airlines Central Training Establishment, which is spread over 11 acres and is adjacent to Begumpet airport. This will give real time training to Air Traffic Controllers and pilots. In the case of Bangalore, efforts are being made to use it for other aviation activities. In any case, while poor passengers, including the first class and business class types, besides economy, will continue to go through the long distance surface transportation ordeal, the government has decided that the old airports could continue to be used by General Aviation, VVIPs, etc. This means every industrialist in India with a plane or charter flight may be able to use the old airports and so will the political VVIPs. India is certainly in for interesting airport times.

2008, AAI incurred a capital expenditure of more than Rs1,900 crores to modernise airports and passenger facilities all across the country. AAI has also undertaken city side development of 35 non-metro airports to meet the growing demand of civil aviation sector. AAI had earlier paid a total dividend of Rs 172 crore (including interim dividend of Rs 60 crore) for the financial year 2006-07 to the government. The Civil Aviation Minister complimented the AAI for its initiatives towards modernising airport infrastructure in the country and emphasised the need for speedy implementation of ongoing projects to meet the growing traffic demand.

Chennai airport expansion gets HC nod Clearing the way for expansion of the Chennai Airport, the High Court dismissed a batch of petitions challenging the land acquisition for the project. A Division Bench, comprising Chief Justice A P Shah and Justice Prabha Sridevan, passed the order, thus enabling the Tamil Nadu government to go ahead with one of its ambitious projects. The Bench had stayed all the proceedings relating to acquisition of land for the project, in December last year. Earlier, a set of petitions challenged the acquisition of 1069.99 acres in Manapakkam, Tharapakkam, Gerugambakkam, Kolapakkam and Kovur around the airport. The petitioners had contended that the state government was acquiring the land under the Tamil Nadu Acquisition of Land for Industrial Purposes Act, though the land was not in an “industrial area” declared by the Government nor was it an “industrial estate”.

here is somebody who wants a secular approach to aviation. At a recent meeting, the All India Haj Committee and its constituent member state committees asked the Union government to

SELECTING PILGRIMS: A file photo of Kerala MP T K Hamza, a member of the State Haj Committee, inaugurating the draw of lots to choose pilgrims at the Kozhikode Collectorate on July 13, 2007

They had also contended that the State Government was not competent to acquire land for the expansion, as the field was occupied by a Central organisation, Airports Authority of India (AAI). The Bench, in its observation, said “it is clear that the acquisition is an independent power emanating from the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution”.

Delhi airport security to go hi-tech After the latest trespass involving a teenage boy who was found strolling below a parked aircraft, the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport is making its security hi-tech following a series of incidents in recent months. A four-layer perimeter intrusion detection system for the airport is on the cards. The system can very effectively track any kind

CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

A panaromic view of Delhi airport

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more than Rs 200 crores. With the massive increase in aviation fuel price, the subsidy will have to be increased, should anyone want the state-owned carrier to remain at least on ground if not in the air. Secondly, should foreign carriers also bid for it, can the government of India also extend subsidy to them? Yes, it is true that for some years Saudia has been allowed to uplift passengers from India for the Haj. But then Saudia belongs to the nation where Mecca is situated. Even more interesting would be the wooing of the likes of Jet, Kingfisher, etc., and some budget carriers. Perhaps, it would be a good idea if any of the budget carriers is ready to spare its aircraft for over a month for Haj and this could also satisfy its desire to fly foreign routes without completing the mandatory five years of continuous flying. So, it may be easy for the Haj Committee to demand but not easy for the government to agree. In case, the Haj Committee demands that it should be allowed to use other carriers, including foreign ones, without taking recourse to any kind of subsidy whatsoever, then there can be no objection from any quarter. Are the Haj committee and government of India ready for this new-look Haj travel?

Haj committee proposes,

govt disposes

terminate the monopoly of Air India as the only carrier ferrying Haj pilgrims to Mecca in Saudi Arabia. The Haj Com-

mittee demanded that the government should empower the committee to negotiate with short listed airline/ company bidders. While seeking the formation of a committee that would include persons from MEA, MOCA and Finance Ministry, it also wanted that those pilgrims who wanted to make alternate arrangement through Haj Tour operators or other airlines may also be allowed. The Haj Committee said it should be allowed to finalise the ticket amount and travel plans with other airlines. Despite this, if the government of India wanted Air India's monopoly to continue, the committee suggested that it must recalculate the Haj fare on no-profit no-loss basis. On the face of it, all these suggestions make sense since what the Committee wants is a true choice. But then, one also needs to talk of true subsidy instead of the hidden subsidy. An outward subsidy provision shows the figure to be

of intrusion into the airport by setting off an alarm. The decision to make the airport security hi-tech comes in the wake of detection of a teenaged boy sitting on the valley (wheels) of a parked aircraft. His entry into the airport went totally unnoticed. “The system will have taut wires, buried cables, closed circuit television cameras and radars. It would be functional in any kind of weather,” DIAL spokesperson Arun Arora said. Companies of international stature have been invited to participate in a tender and the security mechanism would be made functional before the completion of the new terminal at the airport by 2010. The boy, stated to be mentally unfit, scaled the fence walls surrounding the airport and reached the main runway. He then hid inside the valley of a SpiceJet aircraft's wheels for hours before a technical crew of the airlines spotted him. The boy said that a friend of his had suggested to him that he should go abroad — probably as a stowaway — to make money.

Mumbai airport wins award Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA) has been voted the “best airport in public-private partnership” for 2007 in an independent survey of passengers and opinion makers conducted by the Air Passengers Association of India (APAI). “MIAL (Mumbai International Airport Private Limited) is truly honoured to receive this prestigious award from APAI for the second year in a row. This award is a reaffirmation of our vision to transform CSIA into one of the world's best airports,” said G V

Sanjay Reddy, managing director of MIAL. The main parameters considered were cleanliness, amenities, comfort and customs/ immigration. The survey was conducted Air-side view of Mumbai airport online through the APAI website among its members, aviation correspondents from across India and frequent flyers from various industry bodies.

Six multi-modal airport hubs coming India will soon boast of multi-modal international airport hubs across its landscape, similar to the one proposed in Nagpur. The government is planning to develop multi-modal hubs in six metros that would cater not only to commercial airlines but will also have cargo and MRO (maintenance, repair and overhaul) facilities. The cities identified for the proposed hubs are Amritsar, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Thiruvananthapuram, Kolkata and Guwahati. Though the ministry is yet to set a time-frame under which the proposed hubs will be developed, talks have been initiated for a public-private partnership for developing these hubs. These multi-modal hubs would be similar to the one at Nagpur, which is being developed as a cargo and MRO hub. These hubs would act as centres of growth and provide the aviation

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NEWS DIGEST

lines, which use the same phito kill the goose that could lay losophy to pass it on to the the golden eggs. It was therepassengers/ customers. Any fore, not surprising to see an number of meetings have official committee headed by been held between airlines Planning Commission memTF has again emerged as the and the government, ministry ber Anwarul Hoda recomreal pain for airlines. There of civil aviation, finance minmending to the Prime Minishas been another round of istry, state governments, etc. ter that this dubious high sales massive increase in ATF None of the tax-imposing tax on ATF should be immediprices. The basic price is entities have relented and the ately withdrawn and ATF be loaded with all kinds of duties to make the states have continued to levy classified as "declared good" end-product price to airline consumers real- preposterous duties in the so that it attracts a sales tax of Anwarul Hoda ly expensive. Obviously, if the government form of high sales tax. They only four per cent as against believes that charity begins at home, it pass- want new airports, new maintenance facili- the current sales tax of up to 32 per cent. But es on the price increase burden on the air- ties, new training academies, but would like this talk of getting ATF as "declared good" has been on for many years. To be precise, it was in vogue years before the private carriers were allowed to open shop in India. With the exception of Andhra Pradesh, no other state came forward to reduce sales tax to four per cent. In this context, the recommendations of the Hoda Committee assume significance. It has suggested that since VAT is being implemented country wide, even ATF should attract a VAT of 12.5 per cent so that there can be a uniform rate throughout the country. Kerala is one of the vocal states which has even been wanting to launch its own airline to ferry Malayalis to Gulf and back. But even it has not reduced the sales tax on ATF An aircraft being refuelled at Delhi airport to VAT rate of 12.5 per cent.

ATF blues

industry a larger footprint. The ministry has also proposed that these hubs be granted a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) status, similar to what Nagpur currently enjoys.

IAF not to extend night landing facility The Indian Air Force has refused to share its night landing facilities with the Airports Authority of India for Chandigarh international airport. The IAF has cited shortage of manpower as the reason for the refusal. The IAF has its own concerns, officers have been quoted as saying. The Civil Aviation Ministry had asked the Ministry of Defence for its nod to operate international flights through the night. The Ministry of Defence, however, has agreed to extend the Air Traffic Control watch hours only up to eight pm. “Night landing facilities are only for IAF aircraft. We have taken all the aspects, including security, into account and have decided not to give the permission,” said a senior IAF official to journalists. Sources said the air base has been involved in major operations in India since independence. Due to its geographical location the command has always been the hub of activity.

For a bigger, better airport The West Bengal government will conduct a survey for land acquisition for the proposed expansion of Calcutta airport. The survey was discussed at a meeting between state representatives and Airports Authority of India (AAI) officials at Writers' Buildings. “The airport will become saturated in another two decades and we will need land for expansion,” said S.P.S. Bakshi,

the director of the modernisation project at Calcutta airport. There is talk of building a third runway as part of the expansion plan. Bakshi gave a presentation on the airport to the state team, which included transport minister Subhas Chakraborty and Amitabha Nandy, the CPM parliamentarian from Dum Dum.

AAI to out-gun animal, bird threat The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has finally woken up to the threat posed by stray animals and birds to aircraft during landing and takeoff at Dr Ambedkar International Airport. It has decided to install hitech scare-guns known as 'zon guns' in the airport premises to scare animals and birds away from the runways and the operational area. The zon gun is an LPG cylinder-operated ZON GUNS ON DISPLAY: Similar equipment will be used at Delhi airdevice with a rotating port barrel which booms roughly every 30-40 seconds. The sonic blast measures around 100-125 decibels and is sufficient to drive away birds and wild animals in an area of 2-3 acres. The airport has decided to install 12 zon guns on the runway and operation area to shoo away stray animals and birds.

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AIR CARGO

Go east and west Aircargo operators are looking for opportunities — despite the ups and downs in the economy — and have located new markets abroad. In fact, two of the country’s top operators, Blue Dart and GATI, have started serious exploration, as Tirthankar Ghosh found out.

LOBALISATION: That is the name of the game that home-grown aircargo carriers are keen to play. Aware of the competition from such giants as FedEx and UPS, the country’s top express carrier Blue Dart Aviation, a subsidiary of express cargo firm Blue Dart Express, has decided to fly abroad. Speaking to Cruising Heights, Tulsi Mirchandaney, recently elevated to the

FROM OUR FILES: Aviation minister Praful Patel flags off the Air India-GATI plane in April 2007. With him are GATI Managing Director & CEO, Mahendra Agarwal (on the minister's right), the then Air India chief V Thulasidas, Air India's Director - Cargo and Ground Handling, Anita Khurana (behind Agarwal and Thulasidas), one of GATI's directors K L Chugh (on Thulasidas' right) and Air India's joint managing director Dr Vishwapati Trivedi (standing right at the top)

CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

post of Managing Director of Blue Dart Aviation (she was Senior Vice President-Marketing and Projects), pointed out: “The Blue Dart flying abroad plan is there but it is still in its early days and we have very little that we can now speak about.” She should know because she was not only instrumental in creating and marketing air cargo products but also involved in route planning and space allocation. Though the plans are still in their

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“GATI has strategies to take overseas markets by storm” A confident Mahendra Agarwal has chalked out his plans to go overseas. In a one-to-one with CH, he pointed out that GATI would replicate what it had successfully achieved in India. Excerpts: We understand that GATI has big plans to go abroad. When is it going to happen? GATI wants to be a single window logistics solutions provider. GATI is a leader in express distribution and supply chain solutions in India. We have very strong presence in the SAARC and Asia Pacific Region and provide India centric solutions to a fairly large number of customers. We would however like to evolve as a preferred global logistics solutions provider. We have a tie-up with Air India to lease five of their freighters and these are for exclusive usage of GATI. This service is already on and we are connecting the main metros of Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore and Kolkata through these routes. Given our multi-modal connectivity, and our vast infrastructure we are in a position to provide truly seamless distribution solutions in India. Our plans are to provide similar service even in other countries where we already operate and to venture into promising markets. Don’t you think there will be a clash of interests between you and Air India, which is also planning its freighter services in a big way — both domestic and foreign? I don’t think there will be clash of interests primarily because GATI’s strategic alliance with Air India is restricted to the lease and exclusive usage of the freighters. The tapping of the business segment in the air cargo sector is dependent on our marketing skills. The air cargo segment in India is going through a growth phase and there is a huge infancy, a lot of work has already gone in. The move to start flying cargo abroad stems from the fact that the aircraft in the company’s services were not being utilised to their capacity. As of now, Blue Dart’s fleet of seven planes (four Boeing 737s and 3 Boeing 757s) fly around the country for only eight hours at night. Anil Khanna, MD of Blue Dart Express said that the company had started talks with DHL’s aviation outfit to find out ways in which the two could work together and ensure that the Blue Dart planes can be used for international operations. Incidentally, in 2005, DHL Express (Singapore) Pvt Ltd completed the acquisition of 81.03 per cent of the equity capital of Blue Dart Express Limited. As per the acquisition agreement, Blue Dart continues to operate as an independent brand and provides a complete spectrum of domestic and international express services through synergies with DHL. Khanna stressed that as part of Blue Dart’s business expansion, “if we find that it (flying overseas with the help of DHL)

potential to tap. So Air India’s foray into this segment is not going to hamper our operations, it can only be seen as one more competitor in this arena. Our marketing and sales strategies, our people calibre in serving our customers and the service level which we offer, will have the competitive edge we bring to the marketplace. At this juncture, our alliance with Air India is a boon and will work to our advantage. You have already got a tie up with GLS from Amsterdam. Will your foreign services not hamper your agreement? The agreements are by their very nature very different. With GLS, our terms are limited to leveraging our networks to cater to the customers in the respective markets. This alliance opens Europe as a market to all our GATI customers. (We might consider using Air India services if required to cater to this market if the situation is conducive to our service levels and market needs.) How do you view the competition? GATI has plans and strategies to take the overseas markets by storm. Competition cannot deter your plans only make you aware of the market size available and cautious to competition moves. The competitive edge of your product and service will be the brand differentiator in the fight for market share.

The move to start flying cargo abroad stems from the fact that the aircraft in the company’s services were not being utilised to their capacity CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

makes commercial sense and can be operationally put together, we will explore it”. Blue Dart’s planes remain parked through the day since the express carrier operates them for its overnight operations. Those in the company’s logistics division said that the narrow body planes could fly to a number of destinations within close proximity of India like Thailand and Malaysia among others. In fact, Blue Dart’s planes have done cargo charters to Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Flying to the other four SAARC (the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) nations — Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal and Pakistan — would only boost the trade ties between the seven nations and one that would go well with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s “Look East” call. One of the major hindrances that Blue Dart faces to start the operation is the lack of facilities in the country’s metro airports. As it is, the airports face a lot of problems during peak hours when cargo operations are pushed aside

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AIR CARGO

FROM INDIA TO THE WORLD: Blue Dart has plans to fly abroad in the near future

WESTWARD JOURNEY: A GATI-Air India plane on the tarmac

to accommodate passenger airplanes. While Blue Dart is firming up plans, GATI has decided to start its foreign aircargo operations, which it plans to undertake with Air India. In fact, GATI’s Managing Director and CEO Mahendra Agarwal said that his compa-

GLS would act as a strategic partner for GATI in Europe. It will enable GATI to penetrate and capture a significant market share in Europe CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

ny would sign an agreement with Air India to take cargo overseas. This would be a follow-up to GATI’s tie-up late last year with the national carrier. According to that tie-up, three of AI’s Boeing 727-200 freighters operate with the GATI logo within the country. Keen to establish its presence globally, Agarwal recently went into an alliance with the Amsterdam-based General Logistics Systems (GLS). While GATI would be GLS’ partner in India and ensure that shipments brought in reach remote destinations — GATI serves 594 of 604 districts in the country — in turn GLS would help the Indian express distribution major to get into Europe. As Agarwal put it: “GLS would act as a strategic partner for GATI in Europe. It will enable GATI to penetrate and capture a significant market share in Europe.” On its part, GATI has drawn up a $100 million investment blueprint. The money will be spent over the next two years for warehouses, building IT and entering new business areas.

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GLOBETROTTING

AT A GLANCE

Tit for tat for Britons EGYPT has said it will search British personalities going through its airports after Pope Shenouda III, Patriarch of the Coptic Orthodox Church, was made to go through a metal detector at Heathrow Airport in London. The 84 year old, who was opening a catholic church in the UK, was also asked to

undergo a body search, but consequent to objections by the Pope, officials were prevented from doing so. A strongly worded statement communicated to the UK government clearly said that if high level Egyptian figures were being subjected to such treatment, it would bestow a ditto 'tit for tat' treatment for British personalities.

Old graves but

new evidence

he FBI is making a new stab at identifying mysterious skyjacker Dan Cooper, who bailed out of an airliner in 1971 and vanished, releasing new details that it hopes will jog someone's memory. The man calling himself Dan Cooper, also known as D B Cooper, boarded a Northwest flight in Portland for a flight to Seattle on the night of November, 24, 1971, and commandeered the plane, claiming he had dynamite. In Seattle, he demanded and got $2,00,000 along with four parachutes and demanded to be flown to Mexico. Somewhere over southwestern Washington, he jumped out the plane's tail exit with two of the chutes. The FBI released drawings that it said probably are close to what Cooper looked like, along with a map of areas where Cooper might have landed. “Who was Cooper? Did he survive the jump? We're providing new information and pictures and asking for your help in solving the case,” the FBI said in a statement. The FBI initially said that while Cooper

was originally thought to have been an experienced jumper, it later contented that it was just a wrong speculation since it was certain that he didn't survive the jump in the dark and rain. He hadn't specified a route for the plane to fly and had no way of knowing where he was when he went out the exit. “Diving into the wilderness sans a plan and the right equipment, in such terrible conditions, he probably never even got his chute open,” Seattle-based agent Larry Carr said. Several people have claimed to be Cooper over the years, but were dismissed on the basis of physical descriptions, parachuting experience and, later, by DNA evidence. In 1980, a boy walking near the Columbia River found $5,800 of the stolen money, in tattered $20 bills. “Maybe a hydrologist can use the latest technology to trace the $5,800 in ransom money found in 1980 to where Cooper landed upstream,” Carr said. 'Cooper' later parachuted from the plane with $2,00,000 in ransom money. Dead or alive, he has not been found. CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

Mid-air dalliance lands man in trouble FEDERAL AIR marshals charged a Seattle-area man with groping a female passenger aboard a United Airlines flight that compelled the pilot to divert to Pittsburgh because of the

Runway safety: all CRAAP IN WHAT resembled more a sports pep rally than a political demonstration, more than 100 neighbours of Santa Monica Airport have voiced their vehement opposition to a runway safety plan crafted by federal officials. The protestors rallying before Federal Aviation Administration officials presented a plan to the City Council that fails to shorten the length of the runway and also allows

larger jets to take off and land close to homes. Rallied by Concerned Residents Against Airport Pollution (CRAAP) and Friends of Sunset Park, more than 75 residents of Santa Monica, Mar Vista and West Los Angeles then packed the council chambers to testify at a study session on airport safety. At Santa Monica Airport, during unforeseen emergency, aircraft would run off either end of the runway, continue down an embankment, over a highly trafficked road and then into the homes as close as 175 feet from the runway, Rubin told rally participants. CRAAP has simply rubbished the entire runway safety proposal by Federal Aviation Administration officials.

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disturbance. Michael Lamar Holland, 46, had been chatting with a 39year-old woman during the flight which was bound for Seattle from Dulles International Airport near Washington DC. Then the unexpected happened and he was seen groping her. The flight attendants asked the air marshals to get involved. A witness saw Holland

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stroking the woman’s hair while she was half asleep, according to an affidavit filed with the court. Moments later, Holland fondled the woman who repeatedly objected and tried to get away from him, the affidavit said. Holland was instantly handcuffed by air marshals and taken to a vacant seat in another part of the plane. Isn’t that self invited trouble really?

Big Brother NASA is watching

NASA GRUDGINGLY disclosed some results from an $11.3 million (BD4.2m) federal air safety study it previously withheld from the public over concerns it would upset travellers and hurt airline profits. The data reflects hundreds of cases where pilots flew too close to other planes, plunged from altitude or landed at airports without clearance. NASA published the findings — contained in 16208 pages — but did not provide a roadmap to understand them, making it cumbersome for any thorough analysis by outsiders. Released on New Year’s Eve, the unprecedented research conducted over nearly four years relates to safety problems identified by some 25000 commercial and more than 4000 private pilots interviewed by telephone. The results from commercial pilots appeared to reflect in part at least 1266 incidents in which aircraft flew within 500 feet of each other, generally considered a near miss; at least 1312 cases where pilots suddenly dropped or climbed inadvertently more than 300 feet in flight; and 166 reports of pilots landing without clearance at an airport with an active control tower.

Laughing their way to the bank AIRLINES in Oz may soon need to pay passengers $8,000 for delayed flights. As per a recent expansion, foreign airlines may soon have to fork out as much as 8000 Australian dollars a day, per person, if their flights get delayed. According to new laws proposed by the Rudd Government, defaulting airliners could also be paying up to 1800 dollars for lost luggage and 1,80,000 dollars as compensation for injury or death. Transport Minister Anthony Albanese introduced the new rules in the Australian Parliament recently. He said that these rules would bring the country in line with signatories to the Montreal Convention, an agreement between 86 countries. “The new scheme makes it easier for Australians

Airline sued for post-landing blues TWO PASSENGERS who were stranded for hours on American Airlines airplanes that had to be diverted during a major storm over North Texas have sued the carrier, accusing it of false imprisonment, fraud and negligence. Kate Hanni and Catherine Ray were on flights diverted from Dallas-Fort Worth Airport

to Austin on December 29, 2006. After landing, passengers were barred from leaving the plane for more than eight hours despite umpteen requests.

to seek fair and timely protection,” the Sydney Morning Herald quoted him as saying. This means that unlike the old system where a passenger first had to prove that the airline was at fault for losing their luggage, he or she would now be compensated without any questions asked. “So for your thousand-dollar bag you'd get your money back straightaway, no ifs or buts from the airline,” a spokesman for the minister said. “It reverses the onus. If the bag is worth more than the threshold, it would be the airline that would have to prove it was not at fault.” Qantas, Australia's biggest airline, approved of the changes. “Qantas welcomes the Government's announcement which will bring us into line with most of our major trading partners,” a spokesman for the company said.

Organic food in the offing! STERLING AIRLINES will become the first international airline in Northern Europe to introduce organic food on all its scheduled flights. The increasing focus on ecology and health is the reason behind this marked alteration of the range. “In-flight food has never been especially exciting, but we have decided to change all that. In close co-operation with nutrition experts and our catering company, we have developed some much tastier products which are at the same time healthy and 100 per cent organic,” says Michael T Hansen, Commercial Manager at Sterling Airlines A/S. “We aim to be the international airline that Scandinavians prefer. We will still be selling tickets at super-low prices, but we also want to make sure our guests have a good experience while they are with Sterling. The new meals are just one of a number of initiatives that we are introducing in the New Year to make us the most attractive airline,” says Michael T Hansen. The menu will vary and will be altered every second week. As a cost guide, an organic Brunchbag costs EUR8, and an organic sandwich EUR6,50.

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THE GROUND 26

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THE MANY FACES OF GROUND HANDLING: (clockwise from left) Passengers ready to x-ray baggage; cargo being loaded on to an aircraft; and, check-in counters at Delhi airport

The Ground Handling policy has been one of the most complex elements of the civil aviation liberalisation in India. But it has had an ‘yo-yo’ like existence, being modified and changed at will to suit differing interests. R KRISHNAN reports on the latest changes and the consequences for airline operators and airlines. CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

OME MONTHS BACK, the Ministry of Civil Aviation finally touched the 74 per cent mark. Well, if not in the airline business, they decided that the rest of the pie could do with a bit of foreign direct investment (FDI). So, across the board, in cargo, in Ground Handling and in helicopter services the benchmarks were changed to 74 per cent in some and 100 per cent in others. For Ground Handling it was 74 per cent! Now that the regulations have changed — particularly the FDI component — which has been raised to 74 per cent, how many of the foreign partners would like to remain minority stakeholders — separately or jointly, in the JVs that

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THE MANY FACES OF GROUND HANDLING: (clockwise from left) Passengers ready to x-ray baggage; cargo being loaded on to an aircraft; and, check-in counters at Delhi airport

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Ground Handling according to the book

fter the Government of India announced its new Ground Handling policy in 2007, the policy has since been notified. While the DGCA has notified in general including those for non-AAI airports, the airports under AAI, including the 35 non-metro airports and excluding all defence enclave/ airports have been notified through a special Gazette of India by AAI. The relevant notification/ notifications were gazetted on October 18, 2007. As per the regulations, the following definitions apply: Apron means a defined area of the Airport Enclave intended to accommodate aircraft, for the purpose of loading or unloading of passengers or cargo refuelling, parking and maintenance. Civilian enclave means the area, if any, allotted at an airport belonging to any of the armed forces of the Union of India for use by persons availing of any air transport services from such airport or for the handling of baggage or cargo by such service and includes land comprising any building and structure on such area. Ground Handling will mean: Ramp handling including activities as specified in the Schedule I to these regulations; Traffic handling including activities as specified in the Schedule II to these regulations; Any other activity designated by the Chairperson (here of AAI) to be a part either of ramp handling or traffic handling. A Joint Venture Company means a company established with the objective of providing ground handling services at an airport and includes its subsidiary. Maneuvering Area means that part of any airport or an aerodrome or civil enclave to be used for the take off or landing or taxiing of aircraft but does not include apron. Movement Area means a part of an airport or an aerodrome or civil enclave intended for surface movement of aircraft, including the maneuvering area and apron. National Carriers means any airline designated as national carrier by the Government of India, Ministry of Civil Aviation. Terminal Building means the building area or the Airport or Civil Enclave which is used for embarkation or disembarkation or processing of passengers. The Ground Handling Services at airports: A carrier may carry out ground handling services at metropolitan airports; that is the airports located at Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bangalore

they have set up here? On the face of it, there are many who could seriously be toying with this option. But there is a catch and that is in the security clearance that each one of them has to obtain. The Indian government only gave clearance to Chinaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Great Wall cargo carrier to land in Mumbai and Chennai about a month ago after China agreed to allow Jet and other Indian carriers, in addition to Air India, to fly into China and beyond from Shanghai. Earlier, when the original but new Ground Handling policy was announced by the previous BJP-led NDA govern-

and Hyderabad, by engaging the services of any of the following namely: (i) Airports Authority of India or its Joint Venture Company; (ii) Subsidiary companies of the national carrier that is National Aviation Company of India Limited or its Joint Ventures specialised in ground handling services. Such services can be availed provided that third party handling may be permitted to these subsidiaries or their Joint Ventures on the basis of revenue sharing with the Authority, subject to satisfactory observance of performance standards as may be mutually acceptable to the authority and these companies. (This same rule applies to non-AAI or privately-developed and managed airports as well â&#x20AC;&#x201D; like GMR would be the nodal authority for Delhi and Hyderabad, GVK for Mumbai and BIAL for Bangalore while AAI will be the one for Chennai and Kolkata, respectively.) Besides AAI and any private developer and NACIL, there could be any other ground handling service provider selected through competitive bidding on revenue-sharing basis subject to security clearance by the Central Government and observance of performance standards. (Technically, therefore, there will be a maximum of three Ground Handling service providers in the six metro airports and in the case of Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Hyderabad it will be the airport developer themselves like GMR, GVK or BIAL, by virtue of being the developers and airport operators, followed by NACIL-led JVs and a third party selected through bidding process). At all other airports (the Gazette does not mention them as all other non-metro airports but it is presumed they are nonmetro airports which are currently under AAI), in addition to AAI-led JV company, selfhandling may be permitted to airlines, excluding foreign airlines. All concerned agencies shall ensure that state-of-the-art equipment is used and best practices are followed.

There is a catch and that is in the security clearance that each Ground Handler has to obtain CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

ment, Dnata was not allowed because of security reasons as it was feared that the Pakistanis employed by it in Dubai and the UAE could be a security risk to India/ Indian airports. All that has changed, as is evident from the 108 weekly flight frequencies granted to Emirates, besides enormous increases in weekly seat entitlement to Air Asia, Gulf Air, Kuwait Airways and Etihad. What remains to be seen, is when will GMR and GVK invite EOIs for providing Ground Handling services in the beingmodernised Delhi and Mumbai airports, respectively? Further, it also remains to

Airlines or entities presently involved in ground handling, which are not governed by any of these above mentioned guidelines shall not be permitted to undertake self-handling or third party handling with effect from January 1, 2009. Thus, they have only nine months left to wind up their shops in these six metro airports. Restrictions on entry into airports: Entry into and remaining in the movement area or terminal building and at any airport and civil enclave for providing ground handling services or for operating any vehicle or other equipment shall be restricted to: (a) the airline or owner of aircraft or his bona fide whole time employees, or any of the agencies referred to in the regulations; (b) any other carrier or agency who or which has been specially permitted in writing by the Authority to undertake ground handling activities through their bona fide whole time employees and (c) the bona fide whole time employees of the Authority (or the private developer/operator) of the JV Company or the designated agency authorised by it. The Authority or the Private Operator shall lay down terms and conditions (including financial consideration), eligibility criteria for ground handling agency (both financial and technical) and number of such agencies to be appointed at each airport, keeping in view the safety security, demand, available infrastructure, land and other relevant consideration. The Bureau of Civil Aviation Security is empowered to impose such restrictions as may be necessary in this behalf on grounds of security. As mentioned earlier Schedule I includes Ramp Handling which means the following: AIRCRAFT HANDLI- NG: (i) Attendance, (ii) Marshalling, (iii) Parking, (iv) Starting, (v) Safety, (vi) Mooring of Aircraft. AIRCRAFT SERVICING: (i) Liaison for fuelling and defuelling, (ii) Liaison with suppliers for replenishing of oil and other fluids, (iii) Cabin Equipment, (iv) Routine and Non-routine Services and (v) Cooling and Heating. AIRCRAFT CLEANING: (i) Exterior cleaning, (ii) Interior cleaning, (iii) Toilet cleaning and (iv) Water service. CHECK-IN DRILL: GMR employees go through a check-in exercise at the new Hyderabad Airport

be seen if the two private promoters will themselves offer Ground Handling Services or not. For instance, GMR has not formed any company or JV to offer Ground Handling services in its justopened New Hyderabad International Airport at Samshabad. Nor has the Siemens-led Bangalore International Airport. But, GMR has already finalised its revenue-sharing formula with Air IndiaSATS JV and Menezies-Bobba JV, the two authorised Ground Handling Service providers in the new Hyderabad airport. So has BIAL. Even after clearly laying down the

LOADING OR UNLOADING: (i) Load or Unload passenger baggage, (ii) Trans-shipment of passenger baggage, (iii) Operation of Loading or Unloading equipment, (iv) Position and removing of passenger stairs/bridges, (v) Emplane or Deplane passengers, (vi) Break or Make-up baggage, (vii) Business of passengers or crew and (viii) Bulk Loading and Unloading of baggage. CARGO HANDLING SERVICES: (i) Load and offload, export, import and transshipment cargo from the aircraft, (ii) Mail handling services (iii) Operate or provide or arrange essential equipment for handling of cargo, (iv) Transshipment of cargo, (v) Palletisation or containerisation of cargo, (vi) Break or Make-up of cargo container or unit load device and (vii) Bulk loading or unloading. SECURITY: (i) Watch and Ward of registered baggage or cargo or aircraft and handling equipment, (ii) Aircraft security or inspection in transit, (iii) Security or surveillance for ladders point check and (iv) Security for catering items. Under Schedule II - Traffic Handling, the following sections and sub-sections are covered: TERMINAL SERVICES: (i) Handling documents and load control, (ii) Passenger and baggage handling at the airport terminal, (iii) Cargo handling services at the airport terminals, (iv) Mail handling services at the airport terminal, and (v) Traffic services at the airport terminals including passenger checkin. FLIGHT OPERATIONS: (i) Inform the carrier of any known project affecting the operational services and facilities made available to its aircraft in the areas of responsibility, (ii) Flight preparation at the airport of departure, (iii) Flight preparation at a point different from the airport of departure, (iv) Inflight assistance, and (v) Post flight activities, (vi) In-flight redispatch, (vii) Communications systems associated with Ground Handling, and (viii) Material handling. SURFACE TRANSPORT: (i) Arrangements for the transportation of passengers or baggags and cargo between separate terminals at the same airport, (ii) Arrangement for passengers or crew transport together with their baggage between airport and city or other agreed points. REPRESENTATIONAL SERVICES:(i) Liaison with local authorities, (ii) Information to interested parties, movement of carrier aircraft, (iii) Disbursement of payment on behalf of the carriers at all airports and (iv) Supervision and administration services. SECURITY: (i) Registered baggage X-Ray scan check (baggage and cargo), (ii) Surveillance or vigilance for registered baggage at baggage make up or break up area of the airport and (iii) Baggage identification/ watch and ward of registered baggage.

Even after laying down the rules, the Government brought pressure on GMR to lower the rates CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

rules, the government indirectly brought pressure on GMR to lower the rates for Ground Handling Services provided to domestic carriers. Besides the imposition of User Development Fee, the issue of ground handling of flights was another main reason for postponement of opening of the new Hyderabad airport by a week to the midnight on March 23, 2008. This has already caused disquiet among the two agencies providing ground-handling services: Air India-SATS JV and UK-based Menzies and Bangalore-based Bobba JV. With such a precedent set by the government intervention, it will certainly

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Ground Handling according to the book

There is a catch and that is in the security clearance that each Ground Handler has to obtain CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

Even after laying down the rules, the Government brought pressure on GMR to lower the rates CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

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Future handlers

disturb investor sentiments. Clarity needs to be expected on these areas than the policy per se. On the other hand, the Budget Carriers as well as Full Service carriers have a point, in that, it will unnecessarily raise costs and thereby lead to hike in fares that are already under pressure from sharply rising ATF prices. It has been stated above that all â&#x20AC;&#x153;unauthorisedâ&#x20AC;? ground handling agencies including private domestic airlines will be barred from doing self-handling in the six metro airports of Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad, with effect from January 1, 2009. It has also been explicitly stated that in all other nonmetro airports, the private domestic airlines can do self-handling in addition to the JVs mentioned above. Foreign carriers will continue to be barred from selfhandling in all airports. By virtue of the Gazette Notification, Air India, being the National Carrier, and its JV have the first right to offer Ground Handling in all airports in India whether under private developer/ operator or AAI, including in the Civilian Enclaves. For instance, Air India has already tied up with SATS to provide Ground Handling services in the New GMR Hyderabad International Airport and Bangalore International Airport. Air India, in a way, has the divine right to offer ground-handling services in all airports in India. The question, however, is: if it will persist with the same JV partner SATS in all airports, say Delhi and Mumbai, when they are opened after the first phase of modernization or, say Kolkata and Chennai, when they complete modernisation?

HANDLING PASSENGERS: (Left) travellers get ready for security clearance and (above) deplaning to board the bus to the terminal

The AAI received responses to its EOI (Expression of Interest) from 18 parties for providing ground handling at its airports. They are: 1.

Globe Ground India Pvt Ltd

SPDH-Services Portugese de Handling SA with Aviation India Ltd

3. 4. 5.

Equity Aviation Services with Cambata Aviation Pvt Ltd Dnata & Track India Pvt Ltd

Or, Air India may want to go it alone in some airports and have the same JV with SATS in other airports or have altogether new JVs with non-SATS partners. In Hyderabad, the second Ground Handling Agency selected through bidding is UKbased Menzies with Bangalore-based Bobba. In view of the clearly laid down policy for Ground Handling, it will be worthwhile for foreign companies with expertise in ground handling to approach Air India and also AAI to do business in

Swissport Punj Lloyd India Pvt Ltd

10.

Worldwide Flight Services with Bird Consultancy Servics Ltd

11.

Jet Air Pvt Ltd and Aircraft Services International Group

12.

Bahrain Airport Services, National Aviation Services, Kuwait & Nova Aviation Services

13.

Indian Airlines

14.

Singapore Airport Terminal Services Ltd

Celebi Ground Handling Turkey & Spencer Travel Services Ltd

15.

Evergreen Aviation Ground Logistic Enterprises & JJ Hospitality & Management Services

Iberia Lineas Aereas De Espana, ISMT, Taneja Aerospace & JMD Consultants

16.

Global Aviation Services Pvt Ltd & Knafaim Holding Ltd, Tel Aviv

17.

Jeena & Company Mumbai

18.

O S S Aviation Pvt Ltd, Bhopal

Bhadra International Ltd International Consulting Aps

Penauille Servis Air with RR Joshi

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with

Navia

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HANDLING PASSENGERS: (Left) travellers get ready for security clearance and (above) deplaning to board the bus to the terminal

The AAI received responses to its EOI (Expression of Interest) from 18 parties for providing ground handling at its airports. They are: 1.

Globe Ground India Pvt Ltd

SPDH-Services Portugese de Handling SA with Aviation India Ltd

3. 4. 5.

Equity Aviation Services with Cambata Aviation Pvt Ltd Dnata & Track India Pvt Ltd

Swissport Punj Lloyd India Pvt Ltd

10.

Worldwide Flight Services with Bird Consultancy Servics Ltd

11.

Jet Air Pvt Ltd and Aircraft Services International Group

12.

Bahrain Airport Services, National Aviation Services, Kuwait & Nova Aviation Services

13.

Indian Airlines

14.

Singapore Airport Terminal Services Ltd

Celebi Ground Handling Turkey & Spencer Travel Services Ltd

15.

Evergreen Aviation Ground Logistic Enterprises & JJ Hospitality & Management Services

Iberia Lineas Aereas De Espana, ISMT, Taneja Aerospace & JMD Consultants

16.

Global Aviation Services Pvt Ltd & Knafaim Holding Ltd, Tel Aviv

17.

Jeena & Company Mumbai

18.

O S S Aviation Pvt Ltd, Bhopal

Bhadra International Ltd International Consulting Aps

Penauille Servis Air with RR Joshi

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with

Navia

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EASING PASSENGER WOES: An airline staffer checks a passenger in while (below) another gets ready to move with a baggage trolley.

numerous other airports. It may be mentioned here that many of the 35 non-metro airports currently being modernised/ expanded offer profitable prospects in the long-term. In this regard, as far as non-metro Airports under AAI are concerned, the following note forms the basis. AAI, in 2007, invited Expression of Interest (EOI) from interested agency/ agencies to provide comprehensive Ground Handling Services to the airlines operating at the Indian airports. The Ground Handling Services will be for both domestic and international

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operations at major airports like Chennai, Kolkata, Trivandrum, Amritsar, Jaipur, Ahmedabad, Goa, etc. AAI’s EOI floated in the first half of 2007 was meant to select a suitable agency, initially for a period of five years, extendable by another five years, capable of inducting state of the art technology, equipment of world-class standards, including infrastructure and services for such ground handling services. As per the eligibility criteria, the interested parties should have a minimum of five years’ experience in providing IATAstandard comprehensive Ground Handling Services to airlines in India and/ or abroad. The agency should be currently providing Ground Handling to at least 10 airlines at airports in India and/ or abroad and have an annual turnover of Rs 300 crore or US $75 million from Ground Handling operations in any of the last three completed financial years. The agency/s may form a consortium/ JV Company to achieve the expertise, skills and resources that will be required. Besides complying with other regulations, in each of the consortium/ JVC, the Indian entity shall hold not less than 26 per cent. The foreign entity shall hold equity as per the prevailing FDI guidelines on sectoral limits. Though the EOI of AAI was issued in April 2007, a final decision is yet to be taken by AAI as the current debate is if the Authority should have the same JV partner for all its airports or have four JV partners to meet Ground Handling requirement in the four zones — North, East, West and South. The last heard was that the Commercial Advisory Board of AAI (an in-house committee) was looking into the matter. Meanwhile, the Government of India amended the FDI rules and as per the January 30, 2008 decision, government would allow 74 per cent FDI through Automatic Route (RBI) for Ground Handling services, subject to sectoral regulations and security clearances. In the light of this amended FDI rule, it is not known how many of the short-listed parties would like to stick to the original equity structure — especially the foreign partners. We only hope when it comes to AAI airports, including Chennai and Kolkata, besides the 35 non-metros, there will be total fairplay. Rajiv Gandhi Bhawan should not do things that will harm a truncated AAI, which is already losing its battle to private airports and soon may also lose control over its own terminals to private parties if the current talks in Rajiv Gandhi Bhawan are any indication.

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April 2008

CRUISING HEIGHTS S P E C I A L

S U P P L E M E N T

O N

A I R P O R T S

A U T H O R I T Y

O F

I N D I A

TAMIL NADU Marching ahead of the rest The southern region is witnessing faster growth in air traffic movement than the other regions and with the modernization plans for Chennai ready, AAI has its hands full.

KARNATAKA Flight to Bengaluru India's Silicon Valley has a new airport but there are others in the state that are looking forward to growth. The AAI has worked out a number of new initiatives.

KERALA Flying in God's own country!

AAI ready for

SOUTHERN SOJOURN

Boasting of the first private airport in the country, Kerala has taken a big leap forward. With Gulf traffic increasing, the initiatives taken by AAI will go a long way.

ANDHRA PRADESH Hot as a Guntur Chilli The country's aviation scene has found a focal point: the new Hyderabad airport. That is only the starting point since the state and AAI is gearing up to open new airports.

AAI only

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If there is one region that is really flying high it is the south. The extraordinary growth that the region has been experiencing is due to the large number of airports in the four southern states. In fact, all the states have taken a proactive and positive stand to expand existing airports and build Greenfield ones. Providing adequate support for the rapid development is the Airports Authority of India that has been building aviation infrastructure for the nation. Responsible for providing world class facilities to passengers at all airports and create an intricate network for small and big airports that can be used by all kinds of aircraft, both for movement of passengers and goods, the Airports Authority of India has its hands full.

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The

South

is a key driver in our growth Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel outlines his vision for the South.

t different times, in different forms, in innumerable interviews, I have spoken about my dream of connecting India. This connectivity can only come when people are able to travel seamlessly from one part of our country to another. The development and growth of airports and infrastructure will be a key driver in achieving this objective and fulfilling this dream. The Airports Authority of India has a key role to play in this incredible growth story. They are one of the principle drivers in achieving this mission. From the construction of a Greenfield airport at Sikkim to modernising Chennai and Kolkata airports, AAI is in the thick of things, improving our airport infrastructure, upgrading our terminals and modernising the overall aviation landscape. They deserve our gratitude and applause for their commitment to this cause. At the moment, one of the most important tasks before the AAI is the modernisation of Chennai airport and improving the connectivity in the four

A FROM THE CONSTRUCTION OF A GREENFIELD AIRPORT AT SIKKIM TO MODERNISING CHENNAI AND KOLKATA AIRPORTS, AAI IS IN THE THICK OF THINGS, IMPROVING OUR AIRPORT INFRASTRUCTURE, UPGRADING OUR TERMINALS AND MODERNISING THE OVERALL AVIATION LANDSCAPE —————————

CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2007

Southern states. Unlike in other parts of the country, three of the nation’s major gateways — Hyderabad, Bangalore and Chennai — are in the South. That only makes the need for better connectivity between the smaller towns and cities and these hubs. The AAI has undertaken an ambitious programme to better the infrastructure and build new airports in all the four states. If aviation has to grow, then infrastructure must be put in place, There was a time when aviation was just for an elite few. Not anymore. Today, I am delighted to note, aviation has been a great leveller. Anyone and everyone can travel .The domestic aviation sector has been growing at a phenomenal 35 per cent plus each fiscal year. By conservative estimates, we will have an annual compound growth of 25 per cent for the next ten years, which is one of the highest in the world. I have no doubt in my mind that the Airports Authority of India will have a leading role to play in this compelling story.

{AVIATION OUTLOOK}

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“

For AAI

building infrastructure for the nation is a

responsibility ” AAI Chairman Dr K Ramalingam is optimistic about the future and is justifiably proud of the organisation’s expertise and human resources. He points out, in this interview, that the AAI team has worked in the toughest of conditions to deliver quality products to all stakeholders.

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: Isn’t modernising an airport highly technical in nature? Will AAI be able to cope with the huge burden? : At the outset, let me correct the word ‘Burden’ with ‘Responsibility’, as AAI has never felt that building infrastructure for the nation is burden to the organisation. The fact that AAI is managing so many airports is in itself a gargantuan task and that too for the past quarter of a century and more. How do you think we manage so many airports? It is because we have a team of officials who are trained and have the requisite skills, knowledge and attitude in specific areas and they are dedicated to the task. Of course, I admit, there may be a few glitches here and there that get highlighted, but it happens all over the world; but the important factor is that we are aware and are constantly improving ourselves. If you see the overall picture, AAI has been performing well tirelessly all these years.

What are your plans for the modernisation of Chennai airport? Well, AAI would spend Rs 2,000 crore to modernise the Kolkata airport and Rs 1,800 crore for the Chennai airport. The modernisation process has to be completed by 2010-11. At the Kolkata airport, the secondary runway would be extended and constructed along the existing one. For Chennai airport, the existing cross-runway would be operationalised and an additional runway would be built. The in-principle approval for the modernisation plans of the two airports has been given. There are also plans for new parking spaces, taxiways and new airspace management and air traffic control systems.

What is the reason for the extraordinary growth of traffic in South? The higher passenger growth in the region is due to the large number of airports in the four Southern States. Although many of these airports are small, LCC carriers like Simplifly Deccan and regional carriers like Paramount carriers are very well servicing them. I must also mention here that all the four Southern States have taken a very proactive and positive stand with regard to expanding existing airports and building of green field airports. In Tamil Nadu, for example, the State Government has acquired land worth thousands of crores and handed it over to the Airports Authority of India for improving airport facilities at Coimbatore, Madurai, Tiruchirapalli, Tuticorin and Vellore.

AAI Chairman Dr. K. Ramalingam and members of the board presenting the dividend cheque to Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel. Secretary Civil Aviation Ashok Chawla is on the minister’s left.

What is the situation in the other states like Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Kerala? Similarly, apart from the improvement of facilities at Vijayawada, Vishakhapatnam, Tirupati and Rajahmundry, there is an effort to re-model and re-commission the Cuddappah airport, which has not been used for quite some time. We are grateful to the Andhra Pradesh Government for the initiative taken in this regard. In Karnataka, we have made an assessment of several sites,

ALL EFFORTS WILL BE MADE TO PROVIDE WORLD CLASS FACILITIES TO PASSENGERS AT ALL AIRPORTS AND CREATE A NETWORK FOR SMALL AND BIG AIRPORTS ... ————————— including Gulbarga, Bijapur and Shimoga. Our officials have already prepared a techno-economic feasibility study and these proposals, along with a proposal for the development of Hubli airport and another to operationalise the Mysore airport, are likely to go ahead in 2008. We are also looking at and operationalising the airport at Puducherry. An MOU incorporating land requirement has also been signed with the State Governments and they have also handed over close to 50 acres for improving this airport. The Puducherry Government is also keen to develop a Greenfield airport at Karaikal. AAI has already undertaken a feasibility study and the report at the moment is with the State Government.

What is your long-term vision for the South? Quite simply, all efforts will be made to provide world class facilities to passengers at CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

all airports and create an intricate network for small and big airports that can be used by all class of aircraft, both for movement of passengers and goods. As you are aware, Chennai is a very important hub and as we modernise the airport, we are very keen to further consolidate the reputation of Chennai as a gateway to the East and the Far East.

Two new airports have come up in the Greenfield sector in Bangalore and Hyderabad. How do you view this development? (Smiles) We are partners in both the ventures and have contributed a lot in the selection of sites and formation of the joint venture. Why these two, even in the case of Kochi airport, I remember spending months and months identifying the land that was eventually earmarked for the project and guiding the authorities through their first few steps. I was technical advisor and a full team of officers from AAI was involved. We at AAI are proud of our expertise and our human resources. Our team has worked in the toughest of conditions and most hostile of atmospheres to deliver a quality product to all stakeholders. It is not for nothing that AAI staffers are now an integral part of every airport project in this country. It only reflects our capability.

What about the second airport at Sriperumbudur? The Tamil Nadu government has identified 5000 acres of land near Sriperumbudur for building a second airport for Chennai. We have done the pre-feasibility studies and shall be happy to execute the project as and when we are asked to do so by the Ministry of Civil Aviation. The Honourable Minister has already indicated that a second airport will come up. It is now a question of finalis ing the timeframe.

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An artist’s impression of the city side view of the proposed new airport at Madurai.

Coimbatore airport.

Sandwiched between Bay of Bengal to the east and Western Ghats (Elephant Hills) to the west, Tamil Nadu has a geographical area of 130058 sq km. The state has 31 districts with the state capital at Chennai. Ancient temples dot each district. While Ooty, Kodaikanal and Yercaud are popular hill destinations, Chennai’s Marina beach and Mamallpuram (aka Mahabalipuram) are for the sun, sand and sea enthusiasts. The southern region, comprising Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, has 34 operational and non-operational airports, of which, Chennai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad are major hubs. The last two have spanking new international standard airports where the AAI is a key partner. While Hyderabad has been dedicated to the nation, Bengaluru waits for its turn Tamil Nadu has a good score in this tally. The airports in the state are: Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai, Thiruchirapalli and Tuticorin. The non-operational airports, Salem and Vellore are primarily used by flying clubs.

Trichy airport.

Tuticorin airport.

Marching ahead of

the rest

If south is taking the lead in the airport ‘movement’ in the country, Tamil Nadu is taking the lead within the south. A look at Tamil Nadu’s brilliant journey. hile the aviation sector is on the upswing, nationally, the South is actually pushing ahead much faster. For the statistical minded, there are, of course, growth percentages in double digits, where the southern region is clocking a faster growth. The southern region is witnessing faster growth in both air traffic movement and passenger movement. Overall, air traffic

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movement has increased by 31.60 per cent, while passenger traffic increased by 32.50 per cent over the last fiscal. Chennai handles around 512 aircraft movements a day, and on the contrary, Bengaluru and Hyderabad have higher passenger movements. The higher passenger growth in the region is due in part, to air services through 18 airports, big and small. Hitherto untouched airports, because of their Continued on Page 42

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Chennai airport expansion to be completed The modernisation and expansion of the Chennai airport, involving an investment of Rs 1,800 crore, would be completed by 2010 he Airports Authority of India will upgrade Chennai and Kolkata airports at a total cost of Rs 3,800 crore, which is scheduled to be completed by 2010-11. While at the Kolkata airport, a new runway would be constructed along the existing one, at Chennai airport, the existing cross-runway would be operationalised and an additional runway would be built. In the recent past, Chennai had

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grown as a hub for foreign direct investment and large number of foreign investors like Ford, Hyundai, Nissan, Renault, BMW, Saint Gobain, Motorola and Nokia have made the city as their production base. The state had also become an important destination for foreign tourists. As a result, Chennai airport had recorded significant growth in both passenger and cargo traffic. Keeping all this in mind, the Government had decided to go in for moderni-

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sation and expansion. The Chennai High Court also cleared the way for the expansion of the Chennai Airport, when it dismissed a batch of petitions challenging the land acquisition for the project. A Division Bench, comprising Chief Justice A P Shah and Justice Prabha Sridevan, passed the order, thus enabling the Tamil Nadu government to go ahead with one of its ambitious projects. The Bench had stayed all the proceedings relating to acquisition of land for the project, in December last year. The Airports Authority of India has shortlisted six companies, including domestic major L&T, for executing the Rs 3,800 crore Chennai and Kolkata

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by 2010 Glimpses of the Chennai Airport

airports modernisation projects. About 15 international construction majors had approached the AAI to get these projects. The shortlisted companies include ITD (Hong Kong), Ssangyong (Malaysia) and Ms TAV Tepe Akfen (Turkey). L&T, which has bagged contracts for modernising Delhi and Mumbai airports from GMR and GVK, is also in the race for Kolkata and Chennai. The foreign companies have Indian partners for their airport JVs. AAI is learnt to have shortlisted three companies for being appointed as project management consultants, who would oversee the implementation of these two projects on a turnkey basis. Leading firms like US-based Louis Berger

Group are among the shortlisted companies. The AAI had received 11 applications for Kolkata and 12 for Chennai expansion programmes from construction majors of Korea, Thailand, America, Europe and other countries. The global names included Greece's AEGEK General Construction; Malaysia's Muhibbah Engineering and Britain's largest privately-owned construction firm Laing O'Rourke. The committee of infrastructure headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had approved the Chennai modernisation proposal last June. While the Kolkata airport modernisation has so far got pre-Public Investment Board

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(PIB) clearance but yet to get PIB and CCEA nod, Chennai has not got any of the three clearances. Aviation minister Praful Patel wants these projects to begin on time so that they can meet the 2010-11 deadline. So, even as technical approvals are awaited, AAI was asked to go ahead and do its bit so that work can begin on ground as soon as all required clearances come. Work was to begin this February. The Tamil Nadu government has also identified 5000 acres of land near Sripeumbudur for building the second airport for Chennai and AAI is doing pre-feasibility studies as the state government wants the second airport to be ready in the next few years.

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New apron at Coimbatore airport.

smallness in size for bigger aircraft (Boeings or Airbuses), airlines such as Paramount with their Embraers and Simplifly Deccan with the ATR-72 aircraft have been flying successfully and fulfilling the requirements of these small town customers. The growth projections for the fiscal 2007-08 look even better compared to the previous year. Aircraft movement is estimated to touch 0.43 million, while passenger traffic is slated to reach 37.40

THE TAMIL NADU GOVERNMENT IS TAKING PROACTIVE STAND WITH REGARD TO EXPANSION AND BUILDING GREEN-FIELD AIRPORTS AND FOR THE SAME, IS ACQUIRING LAND WORTH Rs 2,400 CRORES. ——————————

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million. That is an increase of 26 per cent and 30.80 per cent respectively. Though there is economic meltdown globally, the region estimates to touch 554000-mt-cargo movement, an increase of 32000 mt. The Tamil Nadu government is taking proactive stand with regard to expansion and building green-field airports. The government is acquiring land worth Rs 2,400 crore, at market rate, and handing over the same to AAI, gratis. The land allotment details are: Coimbatore-396 acres, Madurai- 610 acres, Tiruchirapalli420 acres, Tuticorin-690 acres and Vellore-594 acres. This signals sincerity on improving the existing airports within the state and bringing them at par with the international standards. Coimbatore: This airfield was constructed in 1940, during World War II, primarily for military use. Subsequently, civil airlines started using the airfield with Fokker F27, Douglas DC3 and Hawker Siddley Avro748. Major renovation and modernisation was taken up in mid 80s. In 1955, Indian Airlines (now Indian) commenced first international flight to Sharjah. Since 2007, flights to Colombo and Singapore have commenced. Air Arabia is likely to commence its flight to Sharjah. In spite of international flights, the airport cannot claim to be of international standard. It requires immediate attention to upgrade and modernise the facilities. An outlay of Rs 78 cr has been earmarked for

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AAI:LOOK SOUTH the works. In addition, runway extension for bigger aircraft and parallel taxiways are to be laid to minimise runway occupancy time and turnaround of aircraft. The parking bays have to be extended to accommodate eight aircraft from its present capacity of six as more airlines are using the airport. The present terminal building requires complete facelift, both internally as well as externally. The present plan is to have two aerobridges with visual docking guidance system. Escalators, elevators and modern baggage handling system are part of the modernisation efforts. Tirupur, a township close by, is an internationally known hosiery and knitwear producer. Most part of its production goes to overseas clients. Earlier, the goods were sent through Chennai or Mumbai to overseas destinations. The upgraded and modernised airport would be a boon for exporters, as their transportation cost would come down considerably. Madurai: This is a city steeped in history, going back almost 2600 years. It still has the tag of temple town, the popular one being Meenakshi temple, but the modern temples here belong to IT companies. The airport is 14 km from the city and occupies an area of 502 acres. So far, the airport is served by domestic airlines only and for attracting larger aircraft and international airlines, the airport needs modernisation and expansion. The regional director has assured immigration facilities in the airport. A sum of Rs 150 cr has been earmarked for improvement. The original runway of 6000 ft has been extended to 7500 ft. Even this length may not suffice, once international airlines start operations. Runway aside, the airport needs considerable modernisation of other facilities. The present terminal building can hold a maximum of 230 passengers, which is certainly not adequate, when airport authorities are planning to attract more domestic airlines and hope for international airlines. It is to be seen, whether additional 610 acres allotted by the State government is sufficient for expansion envisaged. Tiruchirapalli: This ancient town, which is now a city, has grown both, on educational and industrial front in the past several decades. On educational front, it scores over cities with some of the best universities in the state. It is a tourist destination too. The length of the runway here was a constraint for using bigger aircraft and as a result, the length was increased from 6000 ft to 8000 ft and became operational in March 2007. And within three weeks, Air India Express commenced flights to Dubai

and Singapore. The airport acquired ISO 9001-2000 in the financial year 2005-06, and it is now in the process of acquiring ISO 14001. There are bigger plans drawn up for making Tiruchirapalli into an international standard airport. This requires tremendous infrastructural additions, the foremost being, increasing the present length of runway from 8000 ft to 12000 ft, capable of taking bigger aircraft like Boeing 747 category. This needs additional land and currently, considerable swathes of land around the airport are available without encumbrances. The authorities envisage an additional 3000 acres, while the State government’s allotment of 420 acres may

Salem airport.

AIRPORTS IN TAMIL NADU HAVE BEEN IN THE FOREFRONT IN OBTAINING QUALITY CERTIFICATION - ISO 9001-2000, COIMBATORE IN 2002-03, MADURAI IN 200405 AND TIRUCHIRAPALLI IN 2005-06. —————————— CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

not suffice. Tuticorin: Once an airstrip, now upgraded to take smaller aircraft. Only Simplifly Deccan uses the airport currently, with ATR72 having 46-seat capacity. The state government has allotted 690 acres for expansion and modernisation. Security has different dimensions in the aviation sector — typically, seen and unseen. Those ‘seen’ and experienced by passengers are checking by security staff, X-ray and explosive trace detection. But this is only one half of security. The `unseen’ includes air traffic management (ATM) and communication, navigation and surveillance (CNS). These two together, provide security to aircraft and passengers, while in flight. At Tiruchirapalli FIDS, IVRS, 2 DFMD and 2 HHMD have been installed. Coimbatore, Madurai and Tiruchirapalli have LAN/WAN system. VOIP phones have been put into use in these three airports. Digital master clock has been commissioned at Madurai. Today’s passenger is more exposed to quality in services offered. The airports too have to move in consonance with passenger’s expectations. Airports in Tamil Nadu have been in the forefront in obtaining quality certification — ISO 9001-2000, Coimbatore in 2002-03, Madurai in 200405 and Tiruchirapalli in 2005-06. Now, these airports are also concerned about environmental impact and are in the process of acquiring ISO 14001. The future seems bright for these airports. Vellore: Under the Airports Authority of India, the airfield is just five km away from the city. It is a fair-weather strip — the runway is 793m × 45m — and is suitable for flying club activities.

{AVIATION OUTLOOK}

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Flying in God’s

own country! “God's own country” is no empty boast. The verdant countryside, rolling hills, pristine beaches, lakes and backwaters make Kerala one of the most enticing States in the country. With a large number of its people working in the Gulf, the airports, though only a few, are being developed as per international standards. erala has three airports: Calicut (aka Kozhikode), Cochin (aka Kochi) and Thiruvananthapuram (formerly, Trivandrum). Cochin is the first private airport of international standard in the country, inaugurated in 1999. Thiruvananthapuram and Calicut airports are under the jurisdiction of the Airports Authority of India (AAI).

Calicut: The airport is located at Karipur, near Calicut, in Malappuram district. It is approximately 25 km from the city. It is the twelfth busiest airport in the country in terms of passenger traffic. The airport handles cargo, and in terms of tonnage, it occupies the eleventh position. Many domestic airlines use the airport and on international routes, Air Arabia (Sharjah), Air India

International departure at Calicut airport.

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(Abu Dhabi, Al-Ain, Bahrain, Doha Dubai, Muscat, Salalah and Sharjah), Air India Express (Dammam, Jeddah and Kuwait), Indian (Bahrain, Doha, Dubai, Muscat and Sharjah), Jet Airways (Doha and Muscat) and Sri Lankan (Colombo) use the airport. Emirates Airline, Etihad Airways, Oman Air and Qatar Airways have shown interest to fly out of Calicut airport.

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The jewel in

Kerala’s airport

crown

The runway length is 9830 ft (2860 m). The approach to the airport runway is surrounded with hills and valleys. Approach to runway 28 is through a gap over deep undulated valleys, up to a distance of 6000 m. Thus, the terrain needs a special type of approach guidance lighting system to ensure safety of aircraft operations, both during night and poor visibility conditions. AAI have provided runway “lead-in lighting” system

Baggage conveyor at the international arrival at Calicut airport.

An Air India Express plane at calicut airport.

at a cost Rs 170 lakh. The lead-in lighting system is a positive visual guidance facilitating the pilots to follow the desired approach path. The desired approach could be curved or straight line and placing of lights requires precise calibration. The lead-in light units are powered through solar power system. Keeping in mind the ever-increasing passenger and international airlines traffic, the airport has undergone upgrading in infrastructure. A 15000 sq m international arrival terminal was inaugurated in May 2007. Three aerobridges, with an option for two more, have been planned to help passengers enter arrival lounge directly. Escalators and elevators have been installed. Three user-friendly conveyor belts have been installed. The plush and practical interiors and convenient facilities, including leather sleeperettes for transit passengers, have given

IT IS AMAZING HOW ONCE A BACK-OF-BEYOND AREA HAS COME INTO PROMINENCE WITH AVIATION BOOM. MORE AIRLINES ARE CAVORTING CALICUT AIRPORT AND REQUEST FOR NIGHT PARKING PLACE IS INCREASING. ... INCREASING THIS WOULD REQUIRE ADDITIONAL LAND AND FUNDS. THE FUTURE HOLDS GOOD FOR THE AIRPORT. —————————— CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

Cochin airport is owned by Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL). It is India’s first public-private-partnership endeavour. It was an initiative of Kerala government, taken in 1991, to build a new airport instead of expanding existing Naval airport. In March 1993, the Ministry of Civil Aviation approved the project. The stake of Centre and State governments together in the project is only 26 per cent and non-resident Indians and a few major Indian business houses hold the rest. The airport is 30 km from Cochin city centre. With a runway length of 11154 ft (3400 m), the airport is capable of handling all types of commercial aircraft currently in use (including Airbus A380 when it starts its operations). In addition, it has a parallel runway of same length. Currently, Cochin is the fourth busiest airport in the country with 464 services in the domestic and 314 services in the international sector, per week. It is estimated that in the fiscal 2007-08, passenger traffic growth will be at 24.84 per cent (32 lakh) and aircraft movement at 25.28 per cent (38896). Construction of a new terminal area with duty free shops and other facilities has been completed recently. And within, it has international standard facilities and utility areas. The frontage of the terminal building has the traditional architectural style of Kerala. CIAL has a land bank of 440 acres at its disposal and this has prompted the company to undertake massive infrastructural additions such as business centres, hotel chains, malls, IT parks, logistics centre and an 18-hole golf course. ATC operations at the airport are with AAI and it was the present AAI Chairman, K Ramalingam who was instrumental in identifying the land and securing it for this historic venture. Most of the airlines of Gulf countries, south Asian and Southeast Asian countries have connectivity to the airport.

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AAI:LOOK SOUTH the airport a modern, international standard look. It is amazing how once a back-ofbeyond area has come into prominence with aviation boom. More airlines are cavorting Calicut airport and request for night parking place is increasing. Presently it has 10 parking bays and increasing this number would require additional land and funds. The future holds good for the airport. Thiruvananthapuram (Trivandrum): The airport was set up in 1932 as part of the Kerala Flying Club and subsequently upgraded in 1991 to an international standard airport making it the first such airport in the country outside the metros. It occupied the numero uno position till Cochin International Airport started its operations in 1999. This definitely dented the airport’s prominence as well as passenger and cargo traffic. The newer, glitzy Cochin airport invoked better mass appeal, though Thiruvananthapuram airport’s major revenue still comes from Gulf sector passengers. The 11148 ft (3398 m) runway is suitable for all types of commercial aircraft presently in use and also for Airbus A380 when it starts operation. Competition from Cochin airport has definitely spurred officials of Thiruvananthapuram airport to upgrade its infrastructure. A sum of Rs 258 cr is in the kitty for the construction of a world-class terminal building. All modern facilities such as escalators, elevators, aerobridges, user-friendly

THE THREE AIRPORTS IN KERALA ARE OF INTERNATIONAL CATEGORY. THERE IS HEALTHY COMPETITION BETWEEN THEM... AIRPORTS ARE TAKING QUALITY INITIATIVE FOR THE COVETED ISO CERTIFICATION AND THE MOMENTUM IS GAINING. ——————————

Thiruvananthapuram airport.

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conveyor belts will be in place once the project is completed. Paucity of adequate check-in counters has been the bane of most of our airports. In order to ease the process of check-in, they have introduced Common Users Terminal Equipment (CUTE) to enable passengers to check-in at any counter. Also, Xray machines will be attached to the side of conveyor belts for faster clearance of baggage. The annual handling capacity of the terminal is estimated at 1.33 million passengers. Interestingly, the airport authorities are preparing a parking lot for 575 cars, which will be larger than what is presently available at our four major metros! The three airports in Kerala are of international category. Also, there is healthy competition between them to grab passenger’s attention. Logically, competition would ensure quality in service. Airports are taking quality initiative for the coveted ISO certification and the momentum is gaining. Calicut airport is ISO 9001:2000 certified and has now engaged consultants for ISO 14001:2004. The Gulf traffic is increasing by the year and it will only enhance airport revenues. Bold new initiatives are being taken by AAI’s southern region to boost non-aeronautical revenues and this also means providing better facilities (including shopping) within the terminals, for passengers. The current statistical indicators, based on the past performance, show an upward trend in passenger traffic, aircraft movement and cargo shipment. It certainly is a positive sign for all the three airports in Kerala.

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Flight to

Bengaluru Karnataka being abode to numerous big and small airports is the recent crowning glory for the state that so far boasted of historical sites and was famed for being countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s IT hub.

Karnataka is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, Goa to the northwest, Maharashtra to the north, Andhra Pradesh to the east, Tamil Nadu to the southeast and Kerala to the southwest.The geographical area of the State is 191791 sq km. It was formerly known as the State of Mysore and later came to be known as Karnataka in 1973. Apart from being replete with historical sites of tourist interest, Karnataka is home to the IT hub of India, and consequently, to several big and small airports as well. The prominent being Bengaluru (formerly Bangalore) and Mangaluru (formerly Mangalore). The smaller ones are Belgaum, Bellary, Bidar, Hassan, Hubli and Mysore (now Mysuru). Indian Air Force has a strong presence in the State with Jakkur Airfield, Chimney Hill Air Force Station, Jalahalli Air Force Station, Vimanapura Air Force Station and Yelahanka Air Force Station.

ATC tower Bangalore

Modified terminal building at Hubli airport

part from being replete with historical sites of tourist interest, Karnataka is home to the IT hub of India, and consequently, to several big and small airports

as well. Belgaum: A small airport with a runway of 5785 ft (1540 m) in length is meant for ATR category aircraft. It is considered that with 2500 ft (or 800 m) extension, Boeing 737-800 category aircraft could land. The Second Para regiment of Maratha Light Infantry Regimental Centre utilises the airfield with Mi-8 helicopters for low height jumping. Indian Navyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Sea Harriers use the air-

The runway at Hubli airport.

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very own showpiece Bengaluru: The original airport belongs to Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), and this airport served both domestic and international traffic. After a decade long protracted delay, construction of a new airport started in July 2005, and has only recently been completed. The airport is owned by Bangalore International Airports Limited (BIAL) and is located at Devanhalli, 40 km from the city. The runway is 12900 ft (4000 m) long with a width of 145 ft (45 m). There are 45 aircraft stands. Operationally, airport caters to 27 aircraft movements per hour. The passenger terminal is a single, twolevel building capable of accommodating international and domestic operations. It is designed for 11 million passengers annually. The building is designed to accommodate 2730 passengers at peak hour. The basement houses retail storage, rest areas and services. Considering the present passenger traffic and quantum of future growth, only nine aerobridges, including one double arm aerobridge, have been provided, which may not be sufficient. And within the building, there are 54 check-in counters. The design of passenger terminal building reflects the best industry practice and caters for 24-hour operation. The facilities provided here will meet IATA standards. All major domestic airlines provide good field for routine sorties. Simplifly Deccan uses this airport for its common man sorties Bellary: Also, known as Vidyanagar airport, it is small with a runway length of 3630 ft (1106 m). It was built by the British government during World War II and then remained non-operational for a long time. There is a renewed interest in the airport due to hectic economic activities taking place due to its vast reserves of high quality iron ore and subsequent setting of integrated steel plants in the region. Hampi: This is a small airport meant for daylight operations. Considering that Hampi is UNESCO World Heritage Site, tourism has immense potential here. Only Simplifly Deccan with ATR72 connects this historical place with Bengaluru. Hubli: The airport currently services the twin cities of Hubli and Dharwad. It

connectivity from Bengaluru to other cities in the country. Amongst international airlines, Air Arabia, Air France, Air India, British Airways, Emirates Airline, Gulf Air, Lufthansa, Malaysia Airlines, Singapore Airlines, Sri Lankan Airlines and Thai Airways International touch base here. Kingfisher plans San Francisco flight (via Hong Kong). Saudi Arabian Airlines and Kuwait Airways have shown interest to fly in. Amongst other airlines, which have announced operations, are Air Mauritius, Dragonair (Hong Kong), Tiger Airways (Singapore) and Oman Air (Muscat). Bengaluru is also becoming a major cargo hub. Dedicated domestic cargo carriers are Blue Dart Aviation (to Chennai) and Jet Airways (to Delhi). The international cargo carriers are Air France Cargo (Paris), Air India Cargo (Frankfurt and Paris), Alitalia Cargo (Rome), Emirates Sky Cargo (Dubai), Etihad Crystal Cargo (Abu Dhabi), Gulf Cargo (Bahrain), Lufthansa Cargo (Frankfurt), Malaysian Airlines Cargo (Kuala Lumpur), Qatar Airways Cargo (Doha), Singapore Airlines Cargo (Singapore), Sri Lankan Cargo (Colombo), Thai Airways Cargo (Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi) and Transmile Air Services (Kuala Lumpur). All Air Traffic operations will be handled by the AAI.

VIP room at Hubli airport.

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The runway at Mangalore airport.

has 5476 ft (1825 m) long runway, equipped for smaller passenger aircraft. Night flying signals were installed last year. It is planned to expand the current airport into an all-weather airport. A sum of Rs 195 cr has been earmarked for the expansion and infrastructure upgrade. It is proposed to acquire 650 acres for expansion purposes. Simplifly Deccan and Kingfisher use the airport with the former evincing interest in night flight to Bengaluru. Mangalore: This is an international as well as customs airport. Located at Bajpe, 20 km from the city, it was opened in 1951 and countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru had arrived on the maiden flight. The original runway is 5300 ft (1615 m) long and recently, a second runway of length 8700 ft (2900 m) was added: The former is flexible pavement while the latter is of concrete surface. Only 1o degree separates the two. The second runway interestingly, is atop

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Air side view of Mangalore airport.

a hillock and could be renamed aptly as "Hilltop Runway"! An Airbus 319 of Kingfisher Airlines was the first aircraft, in that class, to land on this runway. This is the first airport in Karnataka to have two runways. The second, newer, international length runway was commissioned in May 2006. Air India Express flight to Dubai became the first international flight out of Mangalore. In Feb 2007, Air India Express added connections to Abu Dhabi and Muscat and few weeks later to Doha and Bahrain as new destinations. The number of passengers using Mangalore airport has gone up by almost 100 per cent from 2.60 lakh to 5.00 lakh passengers annually. The increase in passenger traffic also helped the airport to earn its maiden profit of Rs 83 lakh in fiscal 2006-07 and now have a target of Rs 6 cr for the financial year 2007-08. Despite increased aircraft movements and higher passenger traffic growth, the passenger terminal building has not changed: It still remains the old, staid building with insignificant cosmetic changes over the years. Airports Authority of India (AAI) has plans for a new, spanking passenger terminal building, at Kenjar, with five aerobridges, 28 check-in counters, latest conveyor belt and inline security checking system. The new building at Kenjar will reduce the distance from the city by 7 km, which at present is 20 km. Though a Customs airport, inbound or outbound cargo movement is negligible and it is hoped that, with modern infrastructure in place, Mangalore airport would attract cargo.

New Initiatives Mysore airfield is currently non-operational. Karnataka government has agreed to hand over 238 acres free of cost and free of encumbrances to the Airports Authority of India to develop and make

New arrival hall at Mangalore airport.

Mysore an operational airport.

Greenfield Projects Airport officials of the southern region,

AIRPORTS AUTHORITY OF INDIA HAS PLANS FOR A NEW, SPANKING PASSENGER TERMINAL BUILDING, AT KENJAR, WITH FIVE AEROBRIDGES, 28 CHECK-IN COUNTERS, LATEST CONVEYOR BELT AND INLINE SECURITY CHECKING SYSTEM... THE NEW BUILDING AT KENJAR WILL FURTHER REDUCE THE DISTANCE BY 7 KM. —————————— CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

along with the consultant, made assessment of the proposed airport sites in September 2007 and prepared a preliminary report on the techno-economic feasibility study on the proposed Greenfield airports. The conclusions are: (a) Gulbarga: The proposed site is suitable for ATR72 type of aircraft with the possibility of future expansion for Airbus A320 operations. This airport will have approximately 5000 ft (1500 m) long runway and terminal building to accommodate a total 100 passengers. (b) Bijapur: The proposed site is suitable for Airbus A320 operations. The runway will be a little over 5125 ft (1600 m) in length and a terminal building to accommodate 100 passengers initially, and subsequent plan to expand to accommodate 150 passengers. (c) Shimoga: The proposed runway length is 5125 ft (1600 m) for ATR72 operations. The terminal building plans to accommodate 150 passengers.

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AAI:LOOK SOUTH ANDHRA PRADESH

Andhra Pradesh Aviation â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Aviationâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;

hot as a

Guntur Chilli The ATC control tower at Tirupati Airport.

An Andhra Kingdom was mentioned in the Sanskrit epics such as Aitreya Brahmana and Mahabharata. This probably was the oldest known kingdom in South India. The geographical area of the State is 275069 sq km and in terms of area Andhra Pradesh is the fourth largest state and occupies the same slot in terms of population. The state has 23 districts. On the east is Bay of Bengal and has 1000 km long coastline. The bordering states are Orissa and Chattisgarh to the north, Maharashtra to the northwest, Karnataka to the west and Tamil Nadu in the south. The operational and non-operational airports in Andhra Pradesh are Begumpet, Cuddapah, Donakonda, Hyderabad International, Rajahmundry, Puttaparthi (Sri Sathya Sai Airport), Tirupati, Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam and Warangal.

he ancient land of the Andhras is not behind its other southern counterparts in having both large and international standard airports, as well as several smaller ones Begumpet (Hyderabad): The airport was established in the 1930s with the for-

T 50

Andhra Pradesh is a state swarming with smaller airports, some of which are non-operational for now, but hold promise for the future. mation of the Hyderabad Aero Club and during the pre-Independence era it was used by the Nizam of Hyderabad. A terminal building was constructed in 1937. PostIndependence, till about 1970s, the traffic was marginal. Currently, the airport is host to Andhra Pradesh Aviation Academy and the Indian Air Force as well. In later years, as the aviation sector picked up, Begumpet airport attained importance in domestic and international traffic till new Hyderabad International Airport came up and inaugurated last month. The airport has 10600 ft (3231 m) long runway. There are 13 parking bays around the new terminal building and five more are used as "night parking bays" next to the old block. The airport is located in the heart of Hyderabad metropolitan area. Till now, it was the sixth busiest airport in the country. The airport will continue to be used for military aviation training for VIP flights and general aviation. In the recent past, most important international VIP to land here was the American President George W CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

Bush in his Air Force One, in 2006. The Airports Authority of India has also proposed to establish an integrated training academy at Begumpet. Nadirgul: This AAI-owned airfield in the state is located 11 km from Hyderabad city. With a runway of 914 m x 152 m, the airfield is suitable for flying club activities. In fact, two flying clubs operate from this strip. Cuddapah: This is a non-operational airport with rudimentary infrastructure. The runway length is only 3600 ft (1097 m) and there is a small block as terminal building, which accommodates only 40 people. It is eight km from the city. Andhra Pradesh government is keen to revive the airport (more details below). Donakonda: This is a non-operational airport, with a runway length of 3000 ft (914 m). Puttaparthi: This airport is also known as Sri Sathya Sai airport, named after the religious guru. Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust owns the airport. It is a small airport with

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AAI:LOOK SOUTH more facilities for chartered flights, rather than commercial aircraft, though, Simplifly Deccan, Kingfisher and Indian operate regular flights connecting Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam.The runway length is 7315 ft (2230 m). The terminal building is modern, air-conditioned with a good conveyor belt system. Rajahmundry: An operational airport, with a runway length of 5710 ft (1740 m), and is used by Simplifly Deccan, connecting it to Hyderabad, Chennai and Vijayawada. The airport is 20 km from the city. It occupies 450 acres and is sufficient for expansion in the future. Tirupati: The Tirupati Tirumala Devasthanam of Lord Venkateswara, on a hillock, is an ancient and popular temple where people flock in millions each year. Modern communication has made it easier for pilgrims to reach. The airport is 14 km from Tirupati town. The present runway length is 7500 ft (2286 m) and it is proposed to be increased by 2890 ft (900 m) to facilitate larger commercial aircraft to land. The apron capacity is for two aircraft of Airbus A320 class. The terminal building's capacity is 300. Night landing facility has been installed and work on new terminal building has commenced. The present operators and their connecting destinations are Simplifly Deccan (Hyderabad, Bengaluru and Visakhapatnam), Indian (Hyderabad and Delhi) and Kingfisher (Hyderabad). Vijayawada: This is a small airport located 18 km from the city. The passenger terminal building capacity is only 100 passengers. The runway length is 5725 ft (1745 m). The airport covers an area of 670 acres. There are two parking bays for Boeing 737 class aircraft. Only two airlines – Simplifly Deccan and Kingfisher – operate out of this airport. The former connects this station with Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad and Rajahmundry and the latter to Hyderabad. Visakhapatnam: This is a coastal city, on the east coast, and the airport is seven km from the city. The Indian Navy that car-

K Ramalingam, Chairman AAI, speaking at the foundation stone laying ceremony of the Integrated Terminal Building of the Vishakhapatnam Airport.

IN TERMS OF PASSENGER TRAFFIC AND AIRCRAFT MOVEMENT, VISAKHAPATNAM AIRPORT IS SECOND ONLY TO HYDERABAD... THERE IS A PROPOSAL TO MAKE THIS AN INTERNATIONAL CATEGORY AIRPORT. —————————— ries out air traffic control as well as provides support for flying operations for both military and civil aviation, controls it. The runway's length is 10500 ft (3200 m). The terminal building's capacity is 225 (arrival 75 and departure 180). The night landing facility was installed in July 2007 and became operational in March this year. There is a proposal to make this an international category airport. This is an ISO 9001:2000 certified airport. In terms of passenger traffic and aircraft movement, Visakhapatnam airport is second only to Hyderabad. Passenger traffic grew from 248202 in 2005-06 to 338495 in 2006-07. Similarly, aircraft movement increased from 5694 in 200506 to 7492 in 2006-07.

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Several domestic airlines operate out of this airport connecting different cities. These are Simplifly Deccan (Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Tirupati), Indian (Delhi, Hyderabad and Mumbai), Jet Lite (Hyderabad and Mumbai), Kingfisher (Hyderabad), Paramount Airways (Hyderabad) and SpiceJet (Delhi, Hyderabad and Mumbai). Jet Airways is planning to start its operations shortly.

New initiatives Cuddapah: There is a proposal to remodel the airport for re-commissioning operations by extending the runway up to 1500 from its present length of 1097 m suitable for ATR72 aircraft. The modernisation plan also includes strengthening of existing aprons, provision of simple approach lighting with PAPI at both ends, renovation of control tower with communication facilities and DVOR as navigational aid and construction of Cat IV fire station. Hyderabad: A spanking new airport has been built at Shamshabad, 22 km from the city, named after the former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. In a way, it has replaced former international airport at Begumpet, 25 km away. The new Hyderabad airport is built by Hyderabad International Airport Limited (HIAL), a publicprivate joint venture between GMR Group, Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad and both the State government of Andhra Pradesh and Airports Authority of India. Though operational the airport is being constructed in three phases. In the initial phase, the airport will be able to accommodate 12 million passengers annually, with a peak hour holding capacity of 3200. Once completed, it will be able to cater for 40 million passengers annually. The estimated cost of the project is Rs 2,300 cr. All ATC functions at this airport are handled by the AAI.

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Other gems of

the South Pondicherry is known for it’s beautiful French architecture, while the scattered islands of Lakshadweep are known for their pristine natural beauty. While both are tourist hotspots, only Lakshadweep has an airport as of now.

Civil Aviation Secretary Ashok Chawla (extreme right) with K Ramalingam and officials during an inspection of the Puducherry airport.

he Union Territory of Puducherry is one of the hotspots of the south but while the airport is still to come up in the former French colony, the one at Agatti attracts large number of passengers. Pondicherry: Now renamed as Puducherry (or new town), Pondicherry was once under French rule. This Union Territory comprises four enclaves: Puducherry and Karaikal in Tamil Nadu, Mahe in Kerala and Yanam in Andhra Pradesh. Of these four, Puducherry is a popular tourist destination. The town still retains the French colonial ambience and many still speak in French. Sri Aurobindo Ashram and Auroville, just 10 km across the border, created by The Mother, attracts a steady stream of domestic and foreign disciples seeking solace and peace. Tourism is a major economic activity complimented by several small and medium enterprises. There is an airstrip, 4000 ft (1200 m)

long at the northern end, fit for Dornier 228 class aircraft, which is non-operational. The Puducherry government is keen to revive and operationalise the airport. Jagson Airlines suspended operations after an inaugural flight. There is a proposal to extend the runway up to 4835 ft (1500 m) in length and strengthen it to cater to ATR 72 class aircraft and subsequently for Airbus A320s. Additional infrastructural developments are needed to meet stipulated ICAO standards

LAKSHADWEEP COMPRISES SEVERAL SCATTERED ISLANDS, 300 KM SOUTHWEST OF KERALA, AND ONLY 10 OF THE 35 ISLANDS ARE INHABITED... THE AIRPORT IS ON AGATTI ISLAND. —————————— CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

for licensing the airport by DGCA. The additional land requirement of 512 acres has been projected to the Puducherry government to be given free of cost and free of all encumbrances. An MoU incorporating the land requirement of 512 acres, comprising 370 acres in Phase I (including transfer of 120 acres of existing airport land in the name of AAI) and 142 acres for Phase II activities has been drawn up. The Puducherry government has already handed over 49.20 acres. Karaikal: South of Puducherry, the State government has proposed to construct a greenfield airport here. The initial feasibility study was undertaken by AAI and the identified sites have been submitted to the government of Puducherry for action to develop the greenfield airport. Agatti: The airport is located in one of the group of islands collectively called Lakshadweep Islands. Lakshadweep comprises several scattered islands, 300 km southwest of Kerala, and only 10 of the 35 islands are inhabited. The palm-covered islands are tourist paradises and the resort on Bangaram Island is for high-end tourists while a new Agatti Island Beach Resort is moderately priced. Snorkelling is a popular sport in the archipelago's pristine lagoons. Fishing and coir products sustain the local economy. The airport is on Agatti Island. The runway of 4235 ft (1291 m) is equipped for Dornier 228 class aircraft and is suitable for daylight operations. Several developments are taking place to upgrade the infrastructure, like the new terminal building to accommodate 50 passengers, control tower and the fire station. A DVOR is also being installed. Agatti is connected to Cochin by Indian and Kingfisher airlines. Pawan hans has helicopter flights between Agatti and Kad mat islands.

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DOMESTIC AIRLINES Air India voted “Most Preferred Domestic Airline” Deccan has 18 new flights DECCAN CONTINUES to extend its reach to all parts of the country and has launched 18 new flights across various sectors. The new flights commenced operations on March 29, 2008, marking the beginning of the summer schedule. Deccan has also added a new destination — Jorhat, to its wide network. Bookings for the flights are open. Ramki Sundaram, officiating CEO, Deccan said, “Deccan continues to provide unparallelled connectivity across the length and breadth of India. In our new summer schedule we have introduced a slew of flights to new city pairs in addition to increasing operations on key routes. Travellers can look forward to timings that make for convenient business and leisure trips.” Deccan goes places with India Post: Deccan continues to simplify ticket bookings and has extended its partnership with India Post to offer flight bookings at Post offices across Tamil Nadu. Deccan’s consistent focus on affordable pricing and ‘any time, any where approach’ to flight bookings has enabled the Indian traveller outside the metros and tier I cities, take to air travel on a large scale. Capt G R Gopinath, Executive Chairman, Deccan said, “Deccan is at the forefront of taking air travel to the interiors by ensuring that our tickets are within easy reach of the common man. Given that presently, only one per cent of Indians have access to the internet and even fewer to credit cards, we constantly seek to explore new and scalable ticketing channels. India Post has an unprecedented presence in all parts of the country, including the interiors.”

(L-R): Captain G R Gopinath, Executive Chairman, Deccan Aviation, exchanging the signed MoU with T Murthy, Post Master General (Business Development & Marketing), along with Indira Krishnakumar, Principal Chief Post Master General, Tamil Nadu Circle

AIR INDIA has been awarded the fifth Mera Brand Award after it was voted the Most Preferred Domestic Airline in the country. The trophy and citation were presented by Prakash Jaiswal, Minister of State for Home Affairs, to D S Kohli, Executive Director (Northern Region) and Vijay Paul, General Manager (Commercial) of Air India at the Consumer World Awards ceremony in New Delhi on March 19, 2008. Air India has won this award twice before, in the same category. The ConsumerWorld awards are the result of an independent, nationwide face-to-face con- Sri Prakash Jaiswal, Minister of State for Home Affairs (left) sumer survey and poll con- presenting the Mera Brand Award to D S Kohli, Executive Director (North) and Vijay Paul, General Manager ducted by TNS India. The (Commercial), Air India at the ConsumerWorld Awards cereconsumers were asked to mony in New Delhi choose a brand, which they prefer the most in each category of the four segments - FMCG, Consumer durable and appliances, Media and Service segment. The results were tabulated and validated by Ernst & Young. Air India phases out Airbus A300s: The last three wide-bodied Airbus A300 aircraft, the workhorse of the erstwhile Indian fleet (now Air India), were phased out on March 31, 2008. Air India had inducted the A300 aircraft into its fleet way back in 1976. The induction of this new generation aircraft into the fleet brought with it many firsts. The Airbus A300 heralded a new era, with the wide-bodied, twin-aisled aircraft being used on domestic sectors for the first time. It also marked the introduction of Executive Class for the first time for domestic travel. The Airbus A300 with a configuration of 32 Executive Class and 215 Economy Class seats catered to the growing traffic on metro sectors and was deployed on the trunk routes, linking one metro city with another. The aircraft in a way, also helped to develop many international sectors like Delhi-Kathmandu; DelhiKabul; Mumbai-Kozhikode-Sharjah; and Chennai-Singapore.

Same-day morning outbound from IndiGo INDIGO offers same-day morning outbound, coupled with evening return nonstop service, as well as afternoon services, conveniently connecting business destinations across India. Speaking on the scope of IndiGo’s services, Bruce Ashby, President and CEO of IndiGo said, “In recent months, we have expanded our scope of services so that we offer not only affordable fares, on time flights and hassle free service, but now, an extremely convenient schedule for our business travellers as well”. “Our focus on affordability, on-time performance, quality and convenience has been recognised by travellers, who recently voted IndiGo the best Low-Fare Carrier in India for the year 2007,” he added.

SpiceJet marks Bengali New Year SPICEJET HAS enhanced connectivity in the East by adding new flights from Kolkata. The airline also offered an inaugural fare of Rs 500 on the new connections from Kolkata to Hyderabad, Mumbai, Delhi, Guwahati and Bangalore to those booking their tickets on April 14, 2008, the Bengali New Year day. All these new flights operate daily and directly connect Kolkata to other key destinations from April 14 onwards, thus providing a wider choice to the travellers. CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

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Cookie Time at Delhi Airport THE AROMA of freshly baked cookies will greet you the next time you walk into Indira Gandhi International Airport. DIAL has tied up with Australia's Cookie Man to set-up a store in the checkin area of IGIA's Terminal 1B. Cookie Man is a world famous Australian business that is easily recognised by its distinctive, bright décor and the unique oven that bakes the fresh cookies, which are synonymous with the brand. Cookie Man was founded in 1958 and the company has outlets across the world in countries like Chile, Korea, Greece, Egypt, Israel, Spain, Mexico, Singapore, Bahrain, China and South Africa, amongst others. More than fifty varieties of cookies will be available.

Airport Unit Award for CISF at IGI CISF AT IGI Airport has been declared Best Airport Unit for the year 2007 for which the Best Unit Trophy has been received by Udayan Banerjee, Chief Airport Security Officer (CASO), during the CISF Day Celebration 2008, at CISF Complex, Indirapuram, Ghaziabad. The CISF Unit at Delhi Airport has detected and recovered 9937 unattended or missing baggages containing cash and valuables worth about Rs 5.55 crore, during the year 2007, against 7127 baggages containing valuables worth about Rs 4.07 crore in the year 2006. The unit has also handled many crisis situations that occurred from time to time. CISF has made a lot of efforts to identify unattended baggages and the reports of the same have been passed to the airport managers as well as BDDS to be handed over to the owners. Finally, these bags were either handed over to the owners or deposited with the airport managers.

Apollo’s services now at Delhi Airport IN LINE with its commitment to provide superior medical facilities to air passengers and employees at Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport, New Delhi, Delhi International Airport (P) Limited (DIAL) has selected Indraprastha Apollo Hospital to provide medical facilities. Indraprastha Apollo Hospital has been awarded the license to operate and manage medical facilities at all passenger and cargo terminals of IGI Airport.

GVHL commissions new hangar GLOBAL VECTRA HELICORP has commissioned its new and modern helicopter maintenance facility and hangar. Located at the Juhu Helibase, Global Vectra has been granted all the requisite approvals for the maintenance and overhaul of its Bell helicopter fleet and the first line maintenance of its current Eurocopter helicopter fleet. The approvals include the range of inspections to fully support the Bell 412 fleet through 100, 300, 600 and 3000-hour checks. The first phase of the development includes the aircraft maintenance facility and associated workshops and is complete, and the second phase will provide a four-storey office block, which will accommodate all the offices and essential support services required by the company. CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

Naresh Goyal ‘Man of the Year' JET AIRWAYS' Chairman Naresh Goyal has been presented with the prestigious ‘Man of the Year’ award by the Belgian Aviation Press Club (APC). The Aviation Press Club is an influential club of Belgian aviation journalists that celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. Goyal was presented with the award by Cathy Buyck, Chairwoman of the APC. Commenting on the honour, Goyal declared “I am honoured to receive this award in the first year of our activities on Brussels Airport. However, credit Naresh Goyal for my winning this award must also go to my team, as well as Brussels Airlines and Brussels Airport, for whose support I am very grateful.” Jet Airways was the first Indian airline to establish a European hub at Brussels, as well as the first to operate direct flights between India and Brussels.

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INTERNATIONAL Jet links financial capitals of Asia: Mumbai and Hong Kong Mexicana to join oneworld MEXICO and Central America’s leading airline has accepted a formal invitation to become part of the world’s leading quality airline alliance after being unanimously elected on board by the grouping’s existing ten member airlines. Its subsidiary Click Mexicana will join at the same time, as an affiliate member of oneworld. So Mexicana and Click Mexicana will be flying as part of oneworld in 2009, when they will start offering the alliance’s full range of services and benefits to their own customers and those from their new one world partners. For Mexicana (airline code MX), joining oneworld will strengthen its competitive offering and its financial position. For oneworld, adding Mexicana will expand the alliance’s network in Mexico and Central America, and enable it to build further on its positions as the leading airline grouping serving Latin America and the leading Spanish-speaking alliance.

JET AIRWAYS has connected two globally prominent financial and commercial hubs with the commencement of its daily, direct services between Mumbai and Hong Kong. With the introduction of this flight aimed at the business and banking community as well as leisure travellers who travel between the two cities in large numbers, Jet Airways will now fly to 60 destinations. Jet Airways’ flight 9W 42 (Mumbai-Hong Kong) departs Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport at 0100 hrs and arrives at Hong Kong International Airport at 0915 hrs. The return flight, 9W 41 (Hong Kong-Mumbai) departs Hong Kong Inter-national Airport at 1905 hrs and arrives at Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport in Mumbai at 2310 hrs. Jet Airways’ flight timings on this route have been carefully planned to offer optimum convenience to the business traveller with an early morning arrival into Hong Kong and return to Mumbai/ India by end of day. Services to the Gulf enhanced: Jet Airways has enhanced its services to Muscat and Doha, with the introduction of daily direct flights on the Kochi-Doha and MumbaiMuscat sectors. Jet Airways’ flight 9W 556 (Kochi-Doha) departs Kochi International Airport at 2200 hrs, and arrives at Doha International Airport at 0020 hrs. On the return leg, Jet Airways’ flight 9W 555 (Doha-Kochi) departs Doha International Airport at 0150 hrs and arrives at Kochi International Airport at 0850 hrs. Code sharing between Jet and ANA: Jet Airways and Tokyo based ANA plan to commence a code sharing and network-wide reciprocal frequent flier partnership effective May 21, 2008, subject to regulatory approval. With this agreement, the first of its kind between an Indian and Japanese carrier, Jet Airways will place its flight code, 9W, on ANA’s daily business jet flights between Mumbai and Tokyo Narita.

Malaysia Airlines nets record profit MALAYSIA AIRLINES reported a record net profit of RM851 million for the financial year ended December 31, 2007; a swing of RM987 million compared to RM136 million in losses a year ago. The net profit of RM851 million marks the national carrier’s highest ever in its 60-year history, surpassing its FY04 record of RM461 million. This is testament to Malaysia Airlines’ life-changing transformation from a close to bankrupt airline in 2005 to one that has achieved record profits in 2007 through its Business Turnaround Plan while maintaining its reputation for excellent services. The achievement was recognised as the world’s best airline turnaround story in 2007, with Malaysia Airlines being awarded the Phoenix award by Penton Media’s Air Transport World, the leading monthly magazine covering the global airline industry.

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AirAsia X orders new fleet AIRASIA X, the new long-haul, low cost-carrier within the AirAsia Group, has signed a firm contract for an additional 10 A330-300s, which brings the airline’s total order to 25 A330 aircraft. In June 2007, AirAsia X placed a first order of 15 A330s. The agreement was signed by Azran Osman-Rani, AirAsia X Chief Executive Officer and John Leahy, Airbus Chief Operating Officer, Customers. AirAsia X is currently operating its long-haul, low-cost service with leased A330s and these will be joined by the first Airbus Chief Operating Officer John Leahy (R) and of the newly ordered aircraft lat- Malaysia’s AirAsia X Chief Executive Azran Osman-Rani er this year. All the aircraft will (L) shake hands as Malaysia’s Transport Minister Ong Tee Keat claps, during a signing ceremony in Kuala Lumpur on be configured to seat 392 passen- March 27, 2008 gers in a single class layout.

IIATA Welcomes ‘Olympic Bypass’ THE International Air Transport Association (IATA) has welcomed the implementation of a new air route over China that will reduce air traffic congestion during the Beijing Olympics. The new route has been designated B208. “We call this route the Olympic Bypass. It will alleviate air traffic delays and congestion, as flights from Europe to Shanghai, Guangzhou and Hong Kong will no longer have to be channelled through

Heathrow’s Terminal Five faces problems THE LONDON HEATHROW’S Terminal Five has been facing some operational difficulties ever since it opened on March 27, 2008. This has affected the level of service that the customers expect. The £4.3bn terminal offered extra passenger capacity but no more flights. Operator BAA said it would put Heathrow at “the leading edge of global travel” but environmental groups say it will lead to more flights and pollution. On the day of the terminal opening, British Airways cancelled 34 flights due to “teething problems” and was later forced to suspend passenger check-in. A malfunction in the new baggage handling system meant that flights took off without bags, and people faced delays of up to four hours as a result of waiting for baggage. On March 27 and 28, 100 flights were cancelled whilst delays continued for a third day on the following Saturday. The problems have continued and on April 10 BA announced that it would postpone moving most of its long-haul flights to the terminal because of the problems. Willie Walsh, BA’s Chief Executive said: “We are making this decision in the interests of customers. Though Terminal Five is now working well, we need to have confidence that good service can be maintained when the terminal is handling larger numbers of customers. It is only sensible to ensure that Terminal 5 is operating consistently at a high standard before the move begins.”

Giovanni Bisignani

Beijing. This is especially critical with the Olympics in August. The experience of previous Olympics host cities tells us that there will be significantly more air traffic in China’s skies during the Olympics,” said Giovanni Bisignani, IATA’s Director General and CEO.

Air Arabia’s new services Air Arabia, the first and largest lowcost carrier (LCC) in the Middle East and North Africa recently launched non-stop daily service between Sharjah, the carrier’s hub, and New Delhi. “The launch of service demonstrates our commitment to the Indian market,” said A K Nizar, Head of Commercial Department, Air Arabia. “This is our 11th destination in India, making us the leading Middle East-based carrier to serve India and the wider South Asia region.”

(L-R) A K Nizar with Rohit Ramachandran, the India head of Air Arabia at the press conference announcing the flights from Delhi

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TRAVEL & TOURISM Beijing has India tourism office UNION Tourism and Culture Minister Ambika Soni has said that the Stakeholders in the tourism sector must explore the possibilities of making tourism innovative and affordable. She was addressing a select gathering in Beijing after inaugurating the India Tourism Office. She said the India tourism Office in Beijing has been set up as per the agreed plan of action for IndiaChina Friendship Year Celebrations during 2007. She said the office would further increase people-to-people contact between the two countries and strengthen bilateral relations between India and China further. The Minister asked the tour operators and local travel agents and airline representatives to increase the volume of traffic from China to India as India has several tourism products to offer to them such as special trains to Buddhist sites, new luxury trains and some The Union Minister of Tourism and Culture, Ambika Soni inaugurating India Tourism Office in Beijing on April 07, 2008 exciting lesser-known tourist destinations. The Indian Ambassador in China, Nirupama Rao, and Arun Ambika Soni also inaugurated a photo-exhibition by Rita Anand, Vice-President, Indian Association of Tour Operators Zhao, the Chinese photographer who visited India during the also spoke on the occasion. Friendship Through Tourism Year.

Sarovar Hotels’ MoU with leading Dubai hotel group

SAROVAR HOTELS & RESORTS has announced the signing of an MOU with a Dubai based company that owns Highland Hotel. This partnership expands Sarovar Group’s global footprint and allows it to operate the 126 room Highland Hotel located in the picturesque Port Rashid, Bur Dubai, just 15 minutes from Dubai International Airport. The hotel is in the heart of some of the most busy shopping and commercial areas of Dubai and offers wide variety of dining experiences from four inhouse F&B outlets, including: Samarkhand — An art restaurant with live entertainment, Rock City — the night club, Daawat — the Indian restaurant, and Coral — The Coffee Shop. Other facilities include — business centre, valet parking, visa processing, banqueting facilities, roof top swimming pool, gymnasium, jacuzzi and sauna.

InterGlobe has new Associate VP INTERGLOBE Technology Quotient (ITQ), the National Distributor of Galileo, Global Distribution System (GDS) has announced the appointment of D P Umashanker as Associate Vice President, Business Strategy & Planning, India. In his new role, he is entrusted with the responsibility for formulating, monitoring and assessing the overall business strategy and drawing long term and short term business plans for the GDS. His D P Umashanker role would also encompass ensuring effective and timely MIS generation for the business as well as revenue management with emphasis on monitoring of incentives.

ADTOI highlights potential of domestic tourism THE ASSOCIATION of Domestic Tour Operators of India (ADTOI) held its Second Annual Convention on April 4, 2008. Muzzafar Hussain Baig, Dy Chief Minister of Jammu & Kashmir inaugurated the convention, while S Banerjee, Secretary, Ministry of Tourism was the Guest of Honour. In his speech, Baig appealed to domestic tour operators to work towards popularising and promoting all destinations in the country, since domestic tourists form the biggest segment in the industry. The Tourism Secretary pointed out that domestic tourism had crossed the 461 million mark last year and there was great potential for rural and farm tourism. The Tourism Ministry, he said, was also very keen to motivate school children to travel to other parts of the country on educational tours to know the diverse culture of the country. The Convention had three business sessions, which discussed methods to augment domestic tourism; partnership J&K Dy CM Muzaffar Hussain Baig (second from between airlines and tour operators and right) with S Banerjee, Secretary, Tourism Ministry, the role of the media in domestic tourism. Mukesh Jagga, Jyoti Kapur and Keshni Anand Arora at the inauguration of the ADTOI Convention The Convention generated interest and interaction between the Government and private sector stakeholders to fully explore the potential of inter-state and intra-state tourism. CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

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Tourism Malaysia appoints Deputy Director TOURISM MALAYSIA, the nodal agency to promote Malaysia as a preferred tourist destination has announced the appointment of Mohd Fadzil Abdullah as Deputy Director for Tourism Malaysia, South India. Mohd Fadzil has been associated with Tourism Malaysia since 2000 and this is his first overseas posting. His seven years of Dato Tan Seng Sung, High association with Tourism Commissioner of Malaysia to India, Malaysia includes assign- Amirul Ariffin, Director Tourism ments for one year each in Malaysia and Roslan Abdullah, exTourism Malaysia at the latthe Corporate and Director ter’s farewell function Marketing Support Division of Tourism Malaysia, which later on followed five concentrated years of service in the Advertising Division. Around the same time Mohd Fadzil Abdullah was appointed, Tourism Malaysia, along with the Malaysian High Commission, bid farewell to Roslan Abdullah, Director, North & East India.

Yatra.com has new CFO YATRA.COM, a leading online travel company has announced the appointment of Alok Vaish as its Chief Financial Officer (CFO). As a CFO, Alok will lead Yatra. com’s overall growth strategy and will be responsible for fund raising, mergers and acquisitions, financial planning, budgeting, cash management, investor relations, corporate secretarial functions and fiscal manage- Alok Vaish ment policies of the company. Alok brings thirteen years of rich experience to Yatra.com. Prior to this, Alok was the CFO of Hindustan Sanitaryware & Industries Ltd (HSIL), which is a publicly listed, largest bathroom products company in India.

IHG enjoys robust growth in india

WelcomHeritage does a hat trick WELCOMHERITAGE added three more exciting properties to bring its tally up to 56. WelcomHeritage, a joint venture between ITC and Marudhar Resorts of Jodhpur, is India’s largest chain of heritage hotels. The three properties that have been signed on are totally different from each other — the first up in the Himalayas at Naldhera, the second in Ajmer District and the third at Puducherry. WelcomHeritage Chalets Naldehra near Shimla consists of 19 unique log huts, with 34 rooms built in Scandinavian style, out of specially treated wood from Finland. Built on a thickly forested mountain spur, they face a deep valley and the spectacular mountainous region can be viewed from every window. Continental and Indian cuisine is served in the restaurant and the cosy bar ensures that spirits remain high, whatever the weather. Golfing, white water rafting on River Sutlej, riding, trekking and fishing (in season) are among the leisure activities offered at this splendid resort. Bijayniwas Palace was built in 1912, by Rao Bijay Singhji the erstwhile ruler of Masuda, a principality within the district of Ajmer. Dushyant Singh, the present owner, has ensured that regal heritage lives on in this elegant Palace through traditional murals and frescoes on the walls and original period furniture. The Dining Hall offers continental and Indian cuisine, while leisure time can be spent enjoyably with a dip in the swimming pool or a game of tennis. Calve in Puducherry dates back to more than 150 years, to a period when the region was under French rule. ‘Calve’ was the residence of a Chettiar family. Now fully restored, the bungalow is a splendid example of architecture of that period, with its unmistakable French ambience — its tall columns, wooden shutters, tiled flooring and fine woodwork are the result of extensive and meticulous restoration. The property’s 10 rooms offer period furniture and soft furnishings in keeping with its heritage status. Continental cuisine includes popular French dishes, along with Indian and local cuisine.

IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group), one of the world’s largest hotel groups by number of rooms, is enjoying robust growth in India with 14 new-look Holiday Inn hotels in various stages of development, across the country. Accounting for more than 3700 rooms, these hotels are scheduled to open over the next three years in 11 cities nationwide. Three of the hotels will be located in Bangalore, India’s Silicon Valley, with the remaining hotels in cities such as Delhi and Dehradun in the north, Cochin and Coimbatore in the south, Kolkata in the east, Mumbai and Pune in the west, and Nagpur in central India. All 14 hotels will be new builds and will feature contemporary design, including new Holiday Inn brand standards such as signature bedding and customised scent and music.

iXiGO launches hotel search engine IXIGO.COM, India’s travel search engine, has announced the launch of India’s most comprehensive hotel search. With iXiGO’s hotel search, customers will be empowered to search and book accommodation in real time with instant confirmation at best prices across 4500 hotels in 320 Indian cities. iXiGO’s new hotel search provides users with more choice than ever before as it includes budget accommodation across hostels, guest-houses, serviced apartments and villas.

(L-R): Jayaprakash of Calve, Puduchery, Yatin C Sood of Chalets Naldehra, Mrs Sood, His Highness Maharaja Gaj Singh, Chairman WelcomHeritage, Rakesh Mathur, President WelcomHeritage, Sunil Sikka, Head Marketing & Product Development, Dushyant Singh of Bijay Niwas Palace and Sunalini

CRUISING HEIGHTS April 2008

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Celebrating a legend T

wo-time Oscar winner Hilary Swank will star as Amelia Earhart in a film about the first woman pilot in the world. She will appear alongside Hollywood star Richard Gere. Directed by Indian film-maker Mira Nair (of Monsoon Wedding fame), Amelia, which is being filmed in Canada and South Africa, tells the story of the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean before disappearing over the Pacific in 1937 at the age of 40. It will also chronicle her rocky relationship with her husband, publisher George Putnam, played by Gere. Swank, 33, walked off with her first Oscar in 2000 for her leading role as a gender-conflicted girl in Boys Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t Cry, and followed it up with another Oscar in 2004 for her portrayal of a female boxer in Million Dollar Baby. Gere, 57, who won a Golden Globe for acting for his role in the musical Chicago, starred in such classic hits as Pretty Woman alongside Julia Roberts in 1990 and American Gigolo in 1980.

(Clockwise from bottom left) Hilary Swank, Ameliaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s director Mira Nair, Richard Gere with Karan Johar (on the sets of Koffee with Karan ) and the legendary aviator Amelia Earhart

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