The first commercial test flight (A320) belonging to Kingfisher Airlines landed smoothly at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad at 3.10 pm on Tuesday. The second aircraft belonging to Jet Airways landed two-and-a-half hours later.
Pilot DD Gandhi, who flew the Kingfisher aircraft from Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, circled thrice over the Shamshabad airport before touching the South Asia's longest runway (4,260 metres) amidst applause from the 50-odd passengers, mostly journalists besides guests and officials of the GMR group.
The sky was cloudy and there were a few drops of rain when the aircraft landed. Hundreds of airport construction workers and officials of GMR Hyderabad International Airport Limited lined up along the airport terminal to witness the historic moment.
Union Minister for Civil Aviation, Praful Patel, Chief Minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy, a couple of his Cabinet colleagues and scores of government officials and representatives of the industry also arrived at the airport to celebrate the occasion.
The greenfield airport is a 63:11:13:13 joint venture between Hyderabad-based GMR Group, Malaysia Airports Holding Berhad, the Andhra Pradesh government, and the AAI.
Built at cost of Rs 2,500 crore (Rs 25 billion), the airport has been completed six months ahead of the schedule. It is scheduled to be inaugurated by United Progressive Alliance A chairperson, Sonia Gandhi, on March 14 and the first commercial airline to take off on midnight of March 15 is stated to be German carrier Lufthansa.
Addressing a press conference, Reddy announced reduction of sales tax on aviation turbine fuel from the existing 33 per cent to 4 per cent. In monetary terms, the reduction would mean a loss of Rs 50 crore (Rs 500 million) to Rs 60 crore (Rs 600 million) annual revenues to the state.
"I wanted the new airport to launch operations at least one day before the launch of operations of the new Bangalore airport. I am happy that the operations are being launched two weeks before the launch of the Bangalore airport," Reddy said.
