Bangalore Aviation News, Reviews, Analysis and opinions of Indian Aviation
The man who pioneered the step forwardS R Valluri Improving the air travel facilities in Bangalore was a long-felt need. Once, in the late ’80s, Dr R Narasimha, my successor as the Director of NAL, and I were returning from Thiruvananthapuram after attending a meeting in ISRO. We noted how crowded the airport was and how badly it was designed. …
Read More »Tag Archives: BIAL
Convince us on BIAL Airport, Mr. Brunner
On May 13th, I had visited the new Bengaluru International Airport being constructed by the BIAL consortium, and posted my visit report. Some BIAL officials called around wanting to find out who took me inside the airport. The reason — they wanted to escort and show me around the airport. I welcome BIAL sentiments and will visit BIAL anytime, at …
Read More »BIAL to open on May 24
The government has finally set the opening for the new Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) for the night of May 23rd, early morning of May 24th, 2008.
Read More »Customs “commercialising” its airport operations
Taking a cue from other statutory bodies like the Airports Authority of India (AAI), and Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), the Indian Customs authorities have demanded payment for their services rendered at the private operated airports like Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) and Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA). Up till now, while AAI and CISF used to be paid for services …
Read More »Transport and Parking at Bengaluru International Airport
December 2008 update. For updated and detailed BMTC Vayu Vajra Volvo airport bus and taxi information, click on the BIA Bus & taxi link on the top menu. For real time flight arrivals and flight departures information use the respective links on the top menu bar or the Real time Flightstats widget at the bottom of the “Recommended Articles” section …
Read More »Bengaluru International Airport gets delayed again
The Civil Aviation ministry today has requested BIAL the promoters of the new Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) to delay the launch of the airport to end May. Most likely it will be May 29, 2008. I offer my sincerest sympathies to the entire team at BIAL and its concessionaires. They have put in hard work to bring the project to …
Read More »The case for keeping HAL open in parallel with BIA
Some readers of my blog have commented that my stand for keeping HAL airport in addition to Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) is not clearly articulated. So here goes. Thanks to the economic boom in India, the liberalisation of the aviation industry, and the efforts of the low cost carriers, who incidentally lead the global surge in aviation growth, Bangalore air …
Read More »I am not against BIA or BIAL
Due to the contrarian views I put forth, readers of my blog may get the impression that I am Anti-BIAL. Nothing can be further from the truth. I am NOT against Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) at all. BIA is a required addition to Bangalore, and I have always admired the efforts put in by the whole team at the BIAL …
Read More »Beware …. Pedestrians
The new Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) will be opened on May 11, 2008. The Election Commission may not have permitted any festivities and gala celebrations, but then, we Bangaloreans, are more interested in the long overdue additional capacity of the new airport. Various government agencies are busy upgrading or creating roads, to improve access to the airport for the expected …
Read More »The BIAL capacity conundrum
Depending on which stake holder of the the Bengaluru International Airport Limited (BIAL) consortium you listen to, the capacity of the new BIA airport is 9 million passengers (as per Airports Authority of India) to 12 million passengers (Mr. Albert Brunner). However, no one has claimed a capacity of over 12 million passengers. At best, we are informed, that the …
Read More »Doubts over air safety at Devanahalli airport
Doubts over air safety at Devanahalli airport V. Sridhar http://www.hindu.com/2008/03/20/stories/2008032057410600.htm Bangalore: For an airport that was to commence operations in March, now postponed to May, the Air Traffic Control (ATC) facility ought to have been up and running. Instead, on a mid-March morning, just six weeks away from the date of commissioning of the airport, chaos reigns at the ATC …
Read More »BIAL should not UDF itself out of the market
Air travel in India has boomed due to the introduction of low cost airlines (LCCs) which have opened air travel to the masses. Their air fares are highly competitive with the upper classes of train fares. Even United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi said, “air travel was not elitist any more“, when inaugurating the new airport at Hyderabad. Despite this …
Read More »Most unpopular airport: Citizen鈥檚 way out
Sunday March 16 2008 00:42 ISThttp://www.newindpress.com/sunday/sundayitems.asp?id=SEC20080315151623&eTitle=Columns&rLink=0TJS GEORGE A FRIGHTENING fact about the Bangalore International Airport is now out in the open – that it was going to start regular flights without crucial air traffic control arrangements at the ready. ATC experts had told a newspaper that operations before specialist personnel and calibrated equipment were fully trained and tested would be …
Read More »BIAL needs to soften their stand – no agreement is cast in stone
Both the Governments (of India and of Karnataka) face a dilemma — while they realise that there is sound logic, to keeping HAL airport open along with the new Bengaluru International Airport (BIA), they face a intransigent BIAL consortium, who appears hell bent on enforcing the terms of their Concession Agreement. We should also try and understand BIAL’s perspective. They …
Read More »The REAL capacity of Bengaluru International Airport
HAL airport has shown us that terminal capacity is far more flexible than runway capacity. After all, we Bangaloreans, who use the terminal, are temperate accommodating people, and as frugal Indians, it is in our nature to always try and extract the maximum from any precious resource, especially infrastructure. Runway capacity on the other hand, is dictated by the hard, …
Read More »Bangalore to beat passenger traffic forecast from day one
Bangalore to beat passenger traffic forecast from day one EXISTING BANGALORE, HYDERABAD AIRPORTS: TO BE OR NOT TO BE BS Reporter / Bangalore March 6, 2008‘Growing demand can keep both new and existing airports fully occupied.’ The new Bangalore international airport, scheduled to start flight operations from March 30, will far exceed its passenger traffic forecast from the very first …
Read More »Delaying the launch of BIAL – The correct choice
While I was very much looking forward to the launch of the new Bengaluru International Airport (BIA), I think the Ministry of Civil Aviation took a very pragmatic and realistic step by delaying the launch. I can understand the frustrations of the BIAL consortium, but let us face facts. The CNS-ATM system would not be erected and properly commissioned in …
Read More »Political cloud over BIAL take-off
Political cloud over take-off14 Mar 2008, 0110 hrs IST,Anil Kumar M & Anshul Dhamija, TNN BANGALORE: There is a strong political hand overlooking the opening of Bengaluru International Airport (BIA). The Centre, on Thursday, officially communicated to Bangalore International Airport Ltd (BIAL) that it should consider an opening date after May 10 – which coincides with the planned state elections. …
Read More »HAL, BIAL wage war over airport
HAL, BIAL wage war over airportAnshul Dhamija | TNNMarch 04, 2008 Bangalore: Should HAL airport be closed? That simple question evoked a major war of words on Tuesday between representatives of HAL, Bangalore International Airport Ltd and industry leaders at a seminar organized by the Centre for Public Policy of the IIM-B. And the battle lasted for almost three hours. …
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