The AAI, which manages the Juhu airport, has proposed to extend the existing 1,140-metre runway by 700-800 metres to enable it to accommodate turboprops and small passenger jets.
Mumbai International Airport Pvt Ltd is a joint venture between GVK-SA consortium and Airports Authority of India. It was awarded the mandate of upgrading and expanding the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport. As per the contract, L&T would build the new integrated passenger terminal and expand the existing facilities, the company informed the Bombay Stock Exchange.
Thousands of tourists have begun leaving Kashmir after a terror attack in Pahalgam killed 26 people, prompting authorities to arrange for their safe return. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah expressed concern over the exodus, while the Civil Aviation Ministry has ordered airlines to ensure there are no fare hikes and to offer extra flights from Srinagar. While many tourists are leaving, some are choosing to stay, citing the presence of security forces and their feeling of safety.
Experts, too, believe that developing airports in places such as Meerut or Moradabad could be a loss-making proposition.
Civil Aviation Minister Vayalar Ravi on Thursday asked managers of state-run airports to tighten up their belts for competing with private-led ones and fulfil their customers' expectations.
Airports Authority of India employees' representatives today said they would not hesitate to go on strike again if the government went ahead with the privatisation of Delhi and Mumbai airports.
Serious lapses at several non-metro airports like damaged X-ray machines, absence of explosive detectors and faulty metal detectors have been found in an audit carried by the aviation security agency BCAS.
The Airport Authority of India employees have yet to call off their strike against the privatisation of the modernisation of the Mumbai and Delhi airports, despite indications late on Friday that the agitation might called off.
This is the first instance of AAI-run airports charging fee.
The country's largest airline IndiGo and Air India have asked passengers to reach Delhi airport at least 3.5 hours prior to domestic departures.
Modi will try to impress upon the Trump administration the importance of appreciating its sensitivities and political implications on the issue of deporting undocumented Indians in military aircraft.
The Karnataka government plans to develop new airports at Gulbarga and Hassan.
Employees of the Airports Authority of India on Tuesday called off their nationwide agitation to ensure job security following the decision to privatise two metro airports
The Societe Internationale de Telecommunications Aeronautiques, which has been in India since 1952, is now partnering with the Airports Authority of India to equip 25 airports with common use passenger processing systems to 'improve the experience of millions of passengers,' Hani El-Assaad, SITA President (Middleast, India and Africa), said in New Delhi.
The metro airports, where the ministry is thinking of restricting the number of ground handling agencies, are Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad.
The decision will benefit the under construction airports at Hyderabad and Bangalore and the one already built in Kochi with majority private participation.
The deportation of 104 Indian nationals from the US, followed by another 119 set to arrive in Amritsar on Saturday night, has sparked controversy in India over the treatment of returnees. The US government's intensified crackdown on undocumented immigrants has led to criticism of the use of handcuffs and shackles for deportees, even those who have committed no crimes beyond immigration violations. The issue has led to heated debates in the Indian Parliament, with opposition leaders demanding an inquiry into the deportation process. The Indian government is engaging with US officials to ensure the humane treatment of deportees, while also facing the challenge of reintegrating returnees into Indian society. The deportations highlight the ongoing tension between border control and human rights, and the complexities of US-India relations.
Level 1 of the terminal will house Kingfisher, Air India, Jet Airways and MIAL offices, while Level 2 will be the security-hold area for passengers after checking in at either terminal 1A or 1B.
In a bid to ease air traffic congestion and ensure safety, government has decided to introduce separate flight corridors for helicopter operations at Delhi and Mumbai airports.
As the manager of a chunk of the country's airports, state-owned AAI is seeking an expansion in the norms to use its land on the city side of any airport for services that are not aviation-related. As of now, the AAI Act allows an airport operator to use land only for aviation-related services.
After imposing development fee in four private airports, the government is mulling charging it from passengers departing from another nine airports in the country.
"Had the government agreed to this proposal of the AAI, the (modernisation of) Mumbai and Delhi airports would have been completed by this time," the Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture said in its latest report. While opposing privatisation, the report said the AAI proposal, which promised to revamp the two facilities in a much shorter time, was "turned down for unknown reasons."
Announcing this in New Delhi, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel said trial runs on the new third runway of IGI Airport would begin in ten days from now. Once operational, it would go a long way to ease the air traffic congestion over the Delhi airspace. The two airports, as per the recommendations of the respective state governments, would be developed by the state-owned AAI and not privatised.
In the last five years, AAI had developed and upgraded 58 airports, including 35 non-metro airports.
AAI holds a minimum of 26 per cent equity in any of the joint venture in the form of assets, and the balance is with private sector/financial institution/state government for city-side development of viable non-metro airports.
The grading system would apply to all airports, including under private developers and the Airports Authority of India, Civil Aviation Secretary Ashok Chawla said at a seminar on Wednesday.
The government is expected to firm up, next week, its position on equity participation in two proposed companies for privatisation and modernisation of Delhi and Mumbai airports, official sources said on Friday.\n\n\n\n
They shouted slogans against the signboard when the airport is named after Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
The terminal and airside development of as many as nine of the 16 non-metro airports, supposed to be completed by next month, has been delayed till next year. This included construction and expansion of terminal buildings, runways and taxiways, among other things.
Even as the date for the two new state-of-the-art international airports in Bangalore and Hyderabad to start operations comes closer, lobbying to prevent closure of the existing facilities -- at the Airport Authority of India's Begumpet airport in Hyderabad and HAL airport in Bangalore -- has got louder.
India conducted nationwide civil defence mock drills simulating multiple hostile scenarios like air raids, fire emergencies, and rescue operations across several states and union territories. The drills, dubbed 'Operation Abhyaas,' aimed to enhance emergency preparedness in light of recent terror attacks. The exercises involved coordinated efforts by various agencies, including civil defence personnel, police, fire and emergency services, and the military. Mock drills were conducted at various locations, including railway stations, malls, and high-rise buildings, showcasing the response capabilities of authorities in different emergency scenarios. The drills highlighted the importance of public awareness and cooperation in dealing with real-time emergencies.
The state-owned operator had earlier built airports in Libya and Yemen.
The state-owned airport authority is conducting a techno-feasibility study.
