Airliners-India.com

sabya99 · Posted: Tue Jul 10, 2012 6:05 pm Post subject:

Shorter, greener flights may slash air fare

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/Shorter-greener-flights-may-slash-air-fare/articleshow/14790130.cms

KOLKATA: A year from now, flights to Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Bangalore or to Hong Kong, Dubai and Doha may take a short cut, reducing travel time, cutting down delays and saving enough fuel to actually bring down ticket prices. This may lead to There will be an environmental impact as well with planes burning less fuel to make the journeys , thereby slashing carbon emission and making skies less gray than it is now.
"Over the next 12 months, communication, navigation and surveillance ( CNS) system at Kolkata airport is set to undergo a sea change. Not only will the new system usher in complete automation, reducing stress in pilot-controller interface, but it will also help airlines economize on fuel by directing them through the shortest and most effective route possible," said Manohar Lal Lehkra, regional executive director, Airports Authority of India.
The Rs 48-crore project has been cleared and the order has been placed with Spanish firm Indra that has supplied equipment to Eurocentre, China and several Gulf countries. The work order is expected to be issued soon. The installation of the system will be completed in 10 months.
Automation will ring in Continuous Descent Operation (CDO) that will guide an aircraft to descend right from the cruise altitude to landing strip in a straight line. At present, a flight, after takeoff, climbs to the allotted cruise altitude and flies at the level till it is time to make the descent to land. "The longer an aircraft flies at a lower altitude, it encounters more air resistance and consequently burns up more fuel. If the plane does a CDO, it will save at least 23 gallons per flight. Annually, an aircraft can save enough fuel to power 100 cars for a year," Air Traffic Controllers Guild secretary (east) Sushil Mondal said.
On the anvil is Airport Inter-facility Data Communication (AIDC) as well. Once this is in place, there will be no need to speak over phone to hand over the plane from one air traffic control (ATC) to another. "Coordination in data link between ATCs will be seamless and automatic. This will allow controllers to provide more direct routing, thereby saving more fuel and reducing flight time," explained ATC Guild (east) president Asit Sinha.
The air space in the Kolkata Flight Information Region (FIR) is also set to undergo a change. At present, the tower controls aircraft movement from ground till 2,000 ft. Thereafter, approach control takes over till 15,000 ft followed by area control that monitors and regulates flights till 46,000 ft. Once the new systems are in place, the area control will be further split into two vertical segments-lower area control that regulates flights till 25,500 ft and thereafter upper area control till 46,000 ft.
While Kolkata FIR has three sectors at present that extend till Jamshedpur and Patna in the west; Dhaka and Guwahati FIR in the east; and Bhubaneswar, Visakhapatnam and oceanic airspace in the west, the upper area will be realigned into seven sectors and the lower one into eight sectors. Controllers in charge of the upper area control will handle all over-flights and some medium haul domestic flights. Those in charge of the lower area control will handle bulk of the domestic flights.
At present, Kolkata FIR handles around 300 landings and takeoffs and 1,500 over-flights daily. With the proposed reduction in lateral separation of two aircraft from 50 nautical mile to 40 and then 30 nautical mile, more flights will be able to pack the same airspace.
"The airspace realignment will bring in operational flexibility, enabling effective use of air traffic controllers. When traffic increases in a sector, it can be collapsed or divided into multiple sectors. When traffic drops, two or more sectors can be merged or consolidated. Apart from providing direct routing, there will be less VHF congestion, less controller overload and seamless transfer from one ATC to another. Now, it is Kolkata-Nagpur-Mumbai or Kolkata-Varanasi-Delhi. Post modernization, the routing will be direct to Delhi or Mumbai with no interchange at Nagpur and Varanasi. This will obviously mean increased safety as controllers will have to handle fewer number of flights at a time," Mondal said.
Another upgrade that will happen in the system upgrade is installation of Automatic Dependence Surveillance Broadcast ( ADSB) stations to monitor and pinpoint position of aircraft through a satellite-based system. These stations will be set up at Amritsar, Jaipur, Port Blair, Trivandrum, Ahmedabad, Nagpur, Calicut, Cochin, Coimbatore, Mangalore, Varanasi, Lucknow, Guwahati and Agartala. Three more stations are proposed at Bhubaneswar and Patna and Pengyong in Sikkim. These will supplement the feed from the existing radars at Kolkata, Berhampur, Visakhapatnam, Varanasi and Guwahati in the east.
"ADSB will be a major safety booster as it will extend seamless radar coverage to blind spots like regions beyond Jamshedpur, Dhanbad and the north-east that are not under electronic surveillance now. All the radars, including the ones at Kolkata, Badur, Jharsuguda, Katihar, Varanasi, Nagpur, Guwahati and Berhampur, will be integrated. Once that happens, instead of single feed, controllers will get multiple feeds on the monitor," said Sinha.
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Sabya99

sumantra · Member Joined: 28 Oct 2007 Posts: 4685 Location: New Delhi

This is good news! As of now, I guess the best system in India is at MAA, with BOM's one being an oft-criticised one. This is as a complete layperson - I do not know the technical details, just some snippets I read off the news channels.
Cheers, Sumantra.

sabya99 · Posted: Tue Jul 10, 2012 11:11 pm Post subject:

Some more videos of new integrated terminal:

Scenery around the new integrated terminal as seen from elevated rail: http://youtu.be/yAObMjv45cE
Internal view of integrated terminal ( possibly international side ): http://youtu.be/1h8TxC8F3c8
Departure area of the new terminal : http://youtu.be/xfJ1hYvNDfs
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Sabya99

sabya99 · Posted: Fri Jul 13, 2012 6:08 pm Post subject:

Private airlines may have to pay 35% more for using new Kolkata terminal
By Abhishek Law
Kolkata, July 12:

Private airlines operating from the Kolkata airport are likely to fork out 35-40 per cent extra for using facilities at the new terminal building. The new building is expected to be operational in October.
The Kolkata airport authority, has proposed to hike rentals for ticket counters and other space (provided to airlines) inside the terminal building.
Rent, include payments for obtaining air-conditioned and non-air-conditioned space, ticket counters, and VIP lounge facilities.
The airport Director, Mr B.P. Sharma, refused to comment on the matter. Calls and messages to him did not elicit any response. Airlines too did not say if there would be a hike in rentals.
However, Captain Sarvesh Gupta, Chairman of the Airlines Operating Committee (at Kolkata airport), confirmed that there were talks of increasing rentals for those using the new facilities.
The Airlines Operating Committee is an association of all airlines operating from the NSC Bose International Airport. There are 16 airlines that operate from the airport.
Proposed rates
The increase in rentals, according to AAI sources, will be based on a proportion of the Rs 5,000 crore modernisation programme of the facilities at the airport.
Rentals in Delhi and Bangalore inched up substantially after modernisation was taken up at these airports. Hikes are likely to be as high as 40 per cent in some cases, they said.
According to airport authorities, the rent for “air-conditioned space” at the new terminal building is likely to be raised to Rs 1,250/sq. metre/month; for non air-conditioned space rates will be Rs 700/sq. m/month.
New charges imposed by the authorities include a monthly charge of Rs 2,250 for ticket counters; while another Rs 3,500/sq. m/month will be charged for providing ‘Executive Lounge/VIP lounge’ facilities.
This apart, a 25 per cent levy might come up on the total rent to be paid by airlines as ‘space utilisation cost’.
Currently, airlines pay Rs 1,000/sq. m/month for air-conditioned space inside the airport.
This included ticket counter charges. Non air-conditioned spaces come at Rs 670/sq. m/month.

Business Line report : http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/logistics/article3631818.ece
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Sabya99

sabya99 · Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2012 3:32 am Post subject:

New terminal gets a big thumbs-up from flyers

Kolkata, July 15:

Facility has capacity to handle 54,000 passengers a day.

Footballer Baichung Bhutia was visibly surprised to see the spruced-up terminal of the Kolkata airport. “It’s a dramatic change,” he said.
Baichung was amongst the few lucky fliers who had been on the IndiGo flight that landed at the new terminal of the Kolkata airport from Mumbai this afternoon.
Trial Run
The trial run of the integrated terminal of the modernised Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Airport (also called Kolkata airport) was successfully carried out on Sunday afternoon.
Operations for domestic airlines are likely to begin from October this year. “The first trial run has been successful. We will conduct the second trial run in a fortnight and then do one by one,” Mr B. P. Sharma, director of the Kolkata airport, said. He added that customs and immigration set-ups were expected to become operational over the next couple months.
Modern facilities
Once fully functional, the terminal can handle nearly 54,000 passengers a day and two crore passengers a year.
Spread over 20 lakh square feet, the modernised facility will have 104 check-in counters, 25 security kiosks, 18 aerobridges, 53 remote stands for aircraft, hi-tech luggage handling system and other amenities.
Passengers were happy with the facilities and arrangements made at the terminal building of the airport.
According to a frequent flier, Mr Debatra Ghosh, the new terminal was ‘fantastic’ and ‘matched up to the levels of Delhi airport (T3)’.
Mr Pushkar Mukherjee was awe-struck when he landed at the new Kolkata airport this afternoon. A frequent flier from Mumbai, he found the new terminal in stark contrast to the old one.
“It took me just five minutes to reach the terminal gate from the flight. It was unbelievable. Earlier, it used to take at least 20 minutes,” Mr Mukherjee said.
The luggage handling and security systems were quite fast , Mr Mukherjee added.
Officials overseeing the luggage handling trials maintained that it took just about two minutes to handle 2,000 trolleys from the bay to terminal.
Maintenance contracts
According to the State Transport Secretary, Mr B. P. Gopalika, who was present at the airport, maintenance of such a well-equipped airport terminal should be given priority. Sources at the Airports Authority of India (AAI) said that the authorities are likely to hand over the maintenance of the new terminal to a private player.
“AAI in the process of floating a tender for system maintenance and housekeeping of the new terminal,” an official added.

Business Line report : http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/logistics/article3642905.ece
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Sabya99

sabya99 · Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2012 3:46 pm Post subject:

Finally something to feel good about NSCBI airport ; initial trial run reports of the new terminal:

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1120716/jsp/calcutta/story_15732534.jsp
and http://www.telegraphindia.com/1120716/jsp/calcutta/story_15732585.jsp
and http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/First-flight-lands-swank-new-terminal-takes-off-in-style/articleshow/14973932.cms
First trial run of the new integrated terminal : http://thestatesman.net/thumbnail.php?img=gallery_images/1.jpg&width=295&height=210 and http://www.anandabazar.com/16cal2.jpg
Some indoor pictures of new terminal: http://www.bartamanpatrika.com/images/dmdm_terminal.jpg
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Sabya99

sumantra · Member Joined: 28 Oct 2007 Posts: 4685 Location: New Delhi

This is indeed a very pleasant surprise, more so for skeptics like me, who have been put off by the still-in-construction and strike signs at the new terminal. Thank you for keeping us all up-to-date, Sabyasachi. I hope that this terminal is well-kept and maintained. It is not that Calcutta cannot maintain its infrastructure - the Metro is quite good, though I have used it only once, in 2007.
Cheers, Sumantra.

sabya99 · Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2012 3:44 am Post subject:

Hi Sumantra, thanks for the input. I am trying to post as much info as possibly. Very Happy

I still think it will take another two years to get everything complete. But this beginning looks good. May God bless Kolkata. As I described earlier downsizing of NSCBI airport was not a fault of Kolkata babus. It was a well thought out plan of India’s central govt. But Manmohanji realized that this airport plays a vital role in India’s growth and prosperity. Keeping it underdeveloped will serve no purpose. Hence the development started. May be earlier CM Buddadeb also helped PM to convince him that way. Now I wish to live long enough to see Kolkata airport handling 40 million pax.

More updates on Kolkata’s new airport terminal:

Aerobridge hurdle for the new terminal: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/Aerobridge-X-ray-hurdles-for-terminal/articleshow/14971349.cms
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/Kolkata-flies-high-finally/articleshow/14971351.cms

A daytime landing at Kolkata airport : http://youtu.be/QNPkQB5tV9U
Nite time landing at Kolkata airport: http://youtu.be/P-QalqmuRRM
Landing from north on main runway: http://youtu.be/UDoh3dpNJlM
Take off from main runway south side using taxiway D: http://youtu.be/NW9LkGk8qc4
Arrival lounge of new terminal: http://youtu.be/XklpLWtBKbw
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Sabya99

sabya99 · Posted: Wed Jul 18, 2012 6:59 pm Post subject:

Emirates offers more for less this monsoon
Subhro Niyogi, TNN | Jul 17, 2012, 04.23PM IST

KOLKATA: Emirates has introduced its global sale offer by offering 15% discount on select destinations across its network. Valid to over 50 destinations for passengers travelling in economy and business class, the sale is valid for booking from July 16 to 23. To avail of this offer, outbound travel must commence on or before November 30, 2012.
Under this offer, an economy class return airfare from Kolkata to Dubai will start at Rs 23,780 inclusive of taxes. The return fare to Kuwait will start at Rs 24,370, Johannesburg Rs 48,710, Mauritius Rs 45,920, London Rs 46,070, Frankfurt Rs 47,200, Zurich Rs 47,780, Paris Rs 38,550, New York Rs 66,030 and Los Angeles Rs 71,700.
Emirates regional manager (north India) Vinay Malhotra said, "We have always been dedicated to offering our customers in India excellent promotions, helping them explore the world without the hefty price tag. We are extremely excited about our innovative and competitive promotion that surely will give passengers another reason to fly Emirates. Our sale is aimed at achieving the same while working together with our travelpartners in the trade."
Airline sales manager (east) Geetika Seth said, "Given the forthcoming monsoon season, we expect our travellers to avail our attractive deal and we are certain that it will be a success amongst them."
Emirates operates 185 weekly flights to 10 Indian destinations in India.
The Times of India : http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/Emirates-offers-more-for-less-this-monsoon/articleshow/15017734.cms
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Sabya99

sabya99 · Posted: Thu Jul 19, 2012 3:58 pm Post subject:

Kolkata airport to get new radars

Subhro Niyogi, TNN | Jul 19, 2012, 03.39AM IST
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/Kolkata-airport-to-get-new-radars/articleshow/15036986.cms

KOLKATA: Even as the spotlight rests on the increased comfort and convenience that the new integrated terminal will offer to passengers once it goes operational later this year, passenger safety is also undergoing a quiet makeover with age-old radars at the airport being replaced by a new one. Another radar has already been installed at Badur in Madhyamgram and is expected to be commissioned soon. The two projects are together worth over Rs 20 crore.
According to Kolkata airport regional executive director ML Lehkra, the ageing airport surveillance radar (ASR) and mono-pulse secondary surveillance radar (MSSR), popularly known as primary and secondary radars, will be replaced by new ones by next year. While the primary radar is used to track aircraft up to a distance of 60 nautical miles or 111 km from the airport, the secondary radar is used to track planes up to 250 nautical miles or 463 km. The twin radars are crucial for the operation of any major airport because they help planes converge and land as well as take off without incident.
"The radars by American firm Westinghouse that are in operation now were installed in 1998. Usually radars of this nature need upgrades every seven-eight years. Hence, these radars should have been decommissioned a long time ago. Though we have managed to keep them in operation for so long, we needed to replace them with newer radars that are technologically more advanced. That is finally happening now," said Airports Authority of India (AAI) general manager (communication, navigation & surveillance) B Ghosh.
The orders for ASR and MSSR radars have been placed with Czech Republic company Eltis. This mode-S, level-II radar incorporates advanced technology that will allow controllers to automatically detect and identify multiple aircraft at the same latitude/longitude coordinates but in different altitudes.
"During busy hours, it is not uncommon to have more than one aircraft in the same position on the radar screen. If there are four such aircraft, stacked on top of each other, the identification procedure that we follow at present is cumbersome because the tags of each aircraft have to be verified manually. The controller speaks to the pilot of each aircraft to make the confirmation. Once the new radars are installed, the identification procedure will be simplified as it will be automatic and not require voice communication," said AAI general manager (air traffic management) Chandan Sen.
The new radars will also increase the robustness of the system as the present radars are susceptible to breakdown, having as they have served for 14 years when they were built for seven. Though the CNS team has kept them in operation, there have been occasions when they have broken down, making life difficult for controllers who were then required to track the aircraft through VHF radio communication. "Reliability of the equipment will increase and that is a big relief for controllers as well as engineers," said Ghosh.
While the radar orders for Kolkata as well as Delhi, Chennai, Mumbai, Amritsar. Trivandrum, Ahmedabad and Cochin have already been placed, the delivery will take place over the next six-seven months. In Kolkata, a building has to be constructed to house the radar. "We have identified the site to the south-east of the runway, a distance apart from the existing ASR-MSSR radar so that there is no interference when both are in operation," said Ghosh. It is only after the new radars are tested and approved will the current radars be shut down for maintenance or de-commissioned. A little away from Dum Dum, another MSSR radar has been installed at Badur. This radar supplied by Spanish firm Indra, is being tested and is expected to be commissioned by this year end.
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Sabya99

sabya99 · Posted: Sat Jul 28, 2012 4:35 pm Post subject:

A lovely and touching video CCU-Dubai-JFK-Cleveland: http://youtu.be/UH4B4OocKfg

Landing from north side on main runway (19L) and simultaneous operation of both runways :
http://youtu.be/113FKSqcWWU ; http://youtu.be/skqmv7TNkKw ( integrated terminal construction still going on.)

A view of Newtown and landing from south side : http://youtu.be/UrJjuoMcji0

A trip from Bihar to Brazil via CCU airport : http://youtu.be/TwMWjAa7Fcg

Landing on south side of secondary runway ( 01L ); red painted ILS antenna of 01L clearly visible. But why it took so long to stop, almost to Kilo taxiway? http://youtu.be/66YCbiW5B1A

Landing from north side on 19R. New construction activity visible possibly isolation bay and/or new taxiways. http://youtu.be/t5XKS4xCC5g

Full view of Kilo taxiway with landing on 19R; http://youtu.be/fgyXZTUrakc
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Sabya99

sabya99 · Posted: Tue Jul 31, 2012 6:13 pm Post subject:

Dragonair flies to CCU on November 2012 no matter which terminal is available.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/Dragonair-flies-into-Kolk
ata-in-November/articleshow/15286707.cms
Times of India report:

KOLKATA: Dragonair, the sister airline of Cathay Pacific Airways, will touch down at Kolkata late in the night on November 2 following an assurance from Airports Authority of India (AAI) that the new integrated passenger terminal will be fully operational by then. The return flight will take off shortly after midnight on November 3.

Dragonair officials, led by general manager ( South Asia, Middle East & Africa) Tom Wright, had visited the city a couple of months ago and met representatives of the state government, Kolkata airport and the travel trade community. The airline had then made it clear that it would land in Kolkata only if it can operate from the new terminal.

"The current international terminal in Kolkata is in a shambles. We don't want to commence services from there as it does not go with our brand image or service standards," an official had told TOI.

With AAI beginning trial operations at the international section of the airport earlier this month, sources said airport authorities were confident of catering to all international flights in a couple of months. However, a couple of key areas remain to be addressed, including aerobridges that are still to arrive from Indonesia and immigration checks that are yet to be in place at the new facility.

Airport officials said both the issues will be sorted out by next month end so that all international flights can migrate to the new terminal by September-October.

The arrival of Dragonair will mark the return of a Hong Kong-based carrier to Kolkata after four decades. Cathay Pacific, which flew into Kolkata in 1953, bid adieu to the city in 1970. It was the first among several airlines to abandon Kolkata. KLM, Royal Nepal, Royal Jordanian, Royal Brunei, Gulf Air, Malaysian Airlines, Jet-Star Asia, British Airways, Lufthansa and GMG followed in due course.

"The new four-times-weekly service to Kolkata will offer more travel choices and greater convenience for passengers travelling between Hong Kong and Eastern India. The new service will be operated by Airbus A320 aircraft," a Dragonair official said. It is the second airline to touch down after the Mamata Banerjee government was sworn into office. Singapore Airline's sister carrier Silk Air had commenced operations last year with a four days-a-week service to complement Singapore Airline's thrice-a-week frequency.

Kolkata is Dragonair's second passenger destination in India, adding to the current daily service between Hong Kong and Bengaluru. Travellers can connect through the Hong Kong hub to and from Dragonair's Mainland China network as well as destinations in North America and Australia.

Travel Agents Federation of India chairman (east) chairman Anil Punjabi said the arrival of the flight will be a big boost to the city and he hoped more airlines will follow suit once the new terminal is in operation. "The airline will also offer great connections to the west coast of US," he said.
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Sabya99

sabya99 · Posted: Fri Aug 03, 2012 5:47 am Post subject:

Insufficient spares from local vendors hit HAL operations.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/logistics/article3717605.ece

Kolkata, Aug. 2:
Inadequate availability of spares from local vendors is impacting Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd’s operations in West Bengal.
The Defence PSU’s Barrackpore Division is responsible for maintenance, repair and overhauling of Cheetah and Chetak helicopters. The unit has assembling facility for modified Cheetah (Cheetal) and Chetak helicopters.
“There is lack of availability of equipment in the eastern region. The local vendors have difficulties in managing their workforce,” K.C. Nanda, General Manager of HAL’s Barrackpore Division, said on Thursday.
He was attending a conference on Defence and industry relation organised by Confederation of Indian Industry here.
According to Nanda, there are 34 vendors located mostly in Kolkata and Howrah that cater to the Barrackpore Division.
Reiterating the need for private participation in aircraft ancillary industry, he said: “We need 60 aircraft engines per year. We are not in a position to meet the requirement, given the current capacity. So, we need participation of the private players.”
Aseem Anand, Director of Directorate of Indigenisation, Indian Navy, who was present on the occasion, said there was a need to encourage private sector’s participation to promote indigenisation of defence equipment.
ayan. pramanik@thehindu.co.in

Comments: During WWII HAL Barrackpore AFB was a major repair and service center for aircrafts operating in south east Asia sector. It now assembles Cheeta choppers. The only center of aircraft industry in east India is being neglected by Bengal govt. and possibly HAL big bosses based in Bangalore. But it could still play a very important role in servicing/ maintenance of turbo-prop air engines. Babus of Kolkata wake up , don’t let such an asset slowly disintegrate.
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Sabya99

sabya99 · Posted: Sat Aug 04, 2012 9:34 pm Post subject:

New-look airport waits for aerobridges

TNN | Aug 4, 2012, Kolkata.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/New-look-airport-waits-for-aerobridges/articleshow/15346919.cms

KOLKATA: The new terminal of the Kolkata airport has missed three deadlines in the past. And now, the fourth one is also staring at an uncertain future with the delay in supply of aerobridges that are supposed to link the terminal directly with the aircraft parking bays. If flight operations commence at the airport's new terminal from October - as committed by the Airports Authority of India (AAI) - only seven aerobridges will be available instead of the 18 passageways that were actually planned. It may take another couple of months to install the rest.
"Officials from AAI headquarters have just completed inspection of the first lot of seven aerobridges in Indonesia. Sections of the aerobridges will be packed into crates and loaded on a freight ship for transport to Kolkata," Kolkata airport director B P Sharma said on Friday.
After a guided tour of the new terminal, airport advisory committee chairman and Union minister of state for urban development Saugata Roy also expressed concern over the delayed arrival of aerobridges. "There has been a delay in the delivery of aerobridges. Otherwise, the airport officials told me that they are confident of completing the airport on time," he said.
While transporting the aerobridges by sea across the Bay of Bengal to Haldia and then to Kolkata airport will take around a fortnight, it will take another fortnight to install the equipment. After putting them through trials, they will just be ready on time by September 30, the latest deadline for completion of the airport project.
With AAI failing to meet three deadlines till now, sources said a decision has been taken to go ahead with the commissioning of the incomplete terminal. Apart from aerobridges, a section of the terminal is under construction and will not be ready till this year-end.
"The section of the terminal that is not complete won't affect passenger service but it is the absence of adequate aerobridges that will hurt, particularly during morning and evening rush hours when multiple flights land and depart. If passengers have to disembark on to the tarmac and then board coaches to the terminal on arrival or the other way round for departure, it will be a shame," said an airline official.
During the only trial run that was carried out on July 15, passengers had to get off the aircraft and board a coach to reach the terminal. On their way, they went across the gaping rectangular steel structures that will hold the glass aerobridges.
"The problem is that the Indonesian firm PT Bukaka Teknik Utama is yet to ship the equipment. Operations at Chennai airport were also being held up due to delay in supply of aerobridges by the same firm. They got delivered just over a fortnight ago. The consignment for Kolkata is next in line," an AAI official told TOI from Delhi.
Though the firm has a poor track record with a former airport director even recommending blacklisting of the company for poor after-sales service (Bukaka had delivered two aerobridges in the existing domestic terminal), AAI handed the order for 18 aerobridges for Kolkata and seven for Chennai to it after the Union home ministry cited security concerns to refuse Chinese firms that had originally been selected. The delay in placing the order has further pushed back its supply and jeopardized the Kolkata airport's takeoff.
"If the aerobridges are not installed when the terminal is commissioned, it will be a major embarrassment for the AAI because getting on to the tarmac and travelling in coaches is unheard of in any modern airport. In several countries, there are aerobridges for transfer to and from smaller aircraft like ATR and CRJ as well," Indian American banker Darius Lilaoonwala, who arrived by the IndiGo flight that did the trial run on July 15, told TOI.
When the first trial run will be held for a departing flight either in August-end or September-beginning, it will be a challenge unless the first lot of aerobridges is installed and ready for use. That is because the departure terminal is on the second level above the arrival terminal located at the ground level.
On being asked whether the first tranche of aerobridges will be installed in the domestic or international section of the integrated terminal, Sharma said both sections would have them to ensure that operations did not suffer. "We could have two of the seven installed in the international section and the rest in domestic. When the next lot arrives, the blank slots will be filled," he said.

Comments: Can we not build aerobridges? Is the tecnology that complex?
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Sabya99

sumantra · Member Joined: 28 Oct 2007 Posts: 4685 Location: New Delhi

sumantra · Member Joined: 28 Oct 2007 Posts: 4685 Location: New Delhi

sabya99 · Posted: Sun Aug 05, 2012 4:17 pm Post subject:

Sumantra,
Thanks for watching!
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Sabya99

sabya99 · Posted: Tue Aug 14, 2012 3:24 pm Post subject:

Kolkata airport’s trial run for multiple flights soon

Ayan Pramanik

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/logistics/article3765184.ece

Kolkata, Aug 13:
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) is likely to conduct a multiple-flight second trial-run on August 17 at the new terminal of Kolkata airport. This is after nearly a month of the new terminal’s first trial-run for a lone flight of IndiGo.
Modern facilityAs the October deadline for operations at the new terminal of Kolkata airport nears, AAI is gearing up for the second trial-run for multiple flights at the modernised facility,” an official of a private carrier told Business Line.
The date will be finalised at a meeting between AAI and the airlines on August 14, sources said.
Frequent trials
It is important to check how amenities like logistics services inside and outside the terminal, luggage handling system and other facilities operate when many flights arrive,” the official added.
AAI might conduct a trial-run once every two weeks to speed up the process of making the new facility fully operational before October, AAI sources said. B. P. Sharma, the regional airport director, however, did not respond to queries from Business Line. On July 30, Dragonair, a sister airline of Cathay Pacific Airways, confirmed that it would begin its new four-time weekly flight between Kolkata and Hong Kong on November 2.
The new terminal is to handle nearly 54,000 passengers a day and two crore passengers a year.
Increased capacity
Spread over 20 lakh sqft, the terminal will have 104 check-in counters, 25 security kiosks, 18 aerobridges, 53 remote stands for aircraft, hi-tech luggage handling system and other amenities.
ayan.pramanik@thehindu.co.in
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Sabya99

sumantra · Member Joined: 28 Oct 2007 Posts: 4685 Location: New Delhi

Arrivals again, or departures also?

jbalonso777 · Posted: Tue Aug 14, 2012 6:14 pm Post subject:

So in October the new Domestic terminal is scheduled to open? Am I right?
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http://www.youtube.com/c/JishnuBasu777

sabya99 · Posted: Wed Aug 15, 2012 6:02 pm Post subject:

This time departure also.
I learnt from ABP that six aerobridges will arrive from Indonesia by August/Sept. Rest will arrive on December and thereafter.
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Sabya99

sumantra · Member Joined: 28 Oct 2007 Posts: 4685 Location: New Delhi

Nice...I have a Calcutta trip lined up, sometime later this year.
Sabyasachi, what about you?
Cheers, Sumantra.

sabya99 · Posted: Thu Aug 16, 2012 4:52 am Post subject:

jbalonso777 · Posted: Thu Aug 16, 2012 10:00 am Post subject:

sabya99 · Posted: Sun Aug 19, 2012 4:11 pm Post subject:

Inside the integrated terminal : http://youtu.be/V2SyYd3JYPY and http://youtu.be/RVvmIkCvFHQ

New aircraft refuel system from 2013
The writer has posted comments on this article Subhro Niyogi, TNN | Aug 19, 2012, 03.10AM IST

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/New-aircraft-refuel-system-from-2013/articleshow/15551646.cms

KOLKATA: In June 2009, a Singapore Airlines plane nearly caught fire when a tanker that was refuelling it went ablaze. For the 268 passengers on board, it was a close shave.

A year from now, a new refuelling system will be in place at Kolkata airport, eliminating the need for using oil tankers, thereby making the operation safe for passengers and airlines. Though IOC has a hydrant system at present, other oil companies do not source fuel from it and use their own tankers.

"Kolkata airport will have a common user terminal where all oil companies will feed their orders. Indian Oil Corporation will operate the terminal and also lay a network of underground pipelines to install fuel hydrants next to parking bays. Once ready, fuel tankers will be done away with. Trucks with booster equipment will be used to pump fuel from underground pipes to the aircraft," said Kolkata airport director B P Sharma.

The fuel hydrant system that is in place in most major airports across the world pumps fuel right up to the filling outlets on the tarmac through underground pipelines for faster refuelling. The new system is also necessary to ensure quicker servicing of aircraft. With the new terminal set to attract more carriers, the hydrant system will be critical for timely turnaround.

"In the present system, a tanker travels from the terminal to an aircraft. After refuelling the plane, the vehicle returns to the terminal for refill before being dispatched for another refuelling operation. This is fine when flights are few. But when more flights operate per hour, then they need to be refilled quicker. And that is possible only through the hydrant system," an IOC official explained. Altogether, 56 fuel hydrants will be installed. Apart from streamlining last-mile dispensation of aviation turbine fuel, IOC will also lay a pipeline to transport ATF from its terminal at Maurigram to the storage tanks at the airport 18 km away. At present, ATF and other fuels are transported from the refinery in Haldia to Maurigram via pipes. "Pipeline construction has begun and will be completed next year," the IOC official said. The Rs 36-crore project will also stop pilferage of ATF that routinely happens under Belghoria expressway and sold as kerosene in the market.
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Sabya99

sabya99 · Posted: Thu Aug 23, 2012 11:00 pm Post subject:

‘Aerotropolis’ near Durgapur hoping to attract flyers from mining belt
Abhishek Law and Pratim Ranjan Bose

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/states/article3812493.ece

For a century old coal mining area in the resource rich Ranigunj coalfields, Andal’s only connection to aviation was an abandoned World War-II airstrip.
But that was nearly a decade ago when Bengal Aerotropolis Projects Ltd (BAPL) was yet to propose setting up the State’s first privately-owned airport as part of an 1,800-acre airport-city (aerotropolis) project, here to tap the huge potential of the adjoining Durgapur-Asansol industrial belt.
Today, its brand new air-traffic control tower rivals the head-gear of the underground Moira colliery, once the tallest structure in town. The Rs 600-crore domestic airport, with peak hour capacity of nearly 450 passengers, is waiting to commence operations in the next four-to five months. “We are likely to make the airport operational by end of 2012,” Subrata Paul, CEO, BAPL, told Business Line.
Sources suggest that though the construction is nearing completion, inauguration would have to wait till a high-voltage power transmission line, that is currently criss-crossing the runway, is duly shifted.
Changi airport
BAPL is a joint venture of Singapore-based Changi Airports International (26 per cent) and four Indian companies – City Star Infrastructure, Lend Lease, PSIDL and Pragati 47. The West Bengal Government has an approximately 1.5 per cent stake in the project. Developed under direct technical assistance of Changi, the airport, fitted with modern night landing facilities, is expected to start operating with daily flights to Kolkata by Jet Airways and Air India flights to Delhi in small-bodied aircraft. According to Paul, both the airlines have evinced initial interest in starting operations from Durgapur. Sources suggest that talks are also on with Indigo.
Incentive schemes
Efforts are on to attract airlines by offering cheaper landing charges, airport usage fees, rentals, night parking facilities and other such freebies. The attempt is to woo an airline to use the airport as a terminal point instead of Kolkata. Sources suggest BAPL has also approached the State Government for sales tax concessions on refuelling, to add to the competitive edge.
Rich catchment
Though Kolkata is merely 200 km away and is connected by good rail and road links, Paul feels there is a definite passenger interest in this route. The company is particularly banking on the huge mining operations, nearly 2,00,000 public sector employees working in three major steel plants, and thriving commerce in the 100-km stretch from Dhanbad to Durgapur.

Comment: Nearby Panagahr airbased is also being upgraded to handle IAFs new tanker aircrafts. These two airfields will put western part of Burdwan district in India's aviation map. I hope they get good passengers from coalfields of Ranigunge area
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Sabya99

sabya99 · Posted: Mon Aug 27, 2012 4:41 am Post subject:

India evaluating China’s military exercises in Tibet

Vinay Kumar

Proposal to raise strike corps for China border in pipeline.
Even as the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) is seized of the Army’s plan to raise an exclusive strike corps for the China border in the eastern sector, the Army is evaluating the recent ground-air combat military drill by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) on the Tibetan plateau.
The PLA has carried out four exercises in Tibet since March.
“We constantly monitor and analyse such exercises; there is no change in the pattern and no new areas are being opened by the Chinese military,’’ sources in the Army said.
On infrastructure-building by China along the border, Defence Minister A.K. Antony told Parliament last week that the government was regularly monitoring all developments in “our neighbourhood,’’ which have a bearing on national security. “Required measures have been initiated through development of infrastructure and operational capabilities to achieve desired levels of defence preparedness to safeguard the sovereignty, territorial integrity and security of India,’’ he said in written reply.
Keen to get at least the Air Force also on board, the CCS is learnt to have asked the armed forces to further work out finer details and come up with a compact proposal for raising a strike corps. Discussions on planning a strike corps as well as two additional divisions for defence of Arunachal Pradesh began about six years ago and continued at various levels before the proposal was sent to the CCS in the form of a note a year ago, government sources familiar with the development on this front said.
Initially, the Army proposed raising three divisions — comprising nearly 45,000 troops — at an estimated cost of about Rs. 7,000 crore. It was proposed to have the corps headquarters at Panagarh in West Bengal.
The proposed strike corps will draw support from IAF fighters operating from renovated bases in the northeast. Sukhoi-30s have been posted at bases in Tezpur and Chhabua. In addition, Jorhat, Bagdogra, Hashimara and Mohanbari bases are also being upgraded.
“The PLA has held at least 21 exercises in the Tibet region over the past one-and-half years. These have been designed for specific scenarios. These exercises also convey to India that they are gearing preparations in high altitude conditions. China wants to convey that it is testing and strengthening its conventional deterrents and enhancing military capability in hostile territory,’’ said Srikanth Kondapalli, Chairman of the Centre for East Asian Studies in Jawaharlal Nehru University.
“India is also conveying a message about its capabilities through Agni V test or deployment of SU-30s,’’ he said.
As perceptions of the Line of Actual Control differed on both sides, transgressions often took place, he noted.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article3824862.ece

Comments: The importance of Burdwan district ( West Bengal ) in India’s strategic map is increasing. Almost defunct Panagarh air based is being reactivated to a fulltime transport base. Nearby Panagarh cantonment will be converted into a corps headquarters. All signs of Bengal’s strategic importance in India’s defense scenario!
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Sabya99

sabya99 · Posted: Wed Aug 29, 2012 6:03 pm Post subject:

All flights from new terminal by March

Subhro Niyogi, TNN | Aug 29, 2012, 04.22AM IST

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/All-flights-from-new-terminal-by-March/articleshow/15915345.cms

KOLKATA: Both the international and the domestic terminal that are currently in use at Kolkata airport will be shut once all flights operate from the new integrated terminal. While the international terminal will remain shut - except perhaps during Haj operations when special chartered flights take the faithful to Saudi Arabia - the domestic terminal will be reopened only if regional airlines decide to operate from Kolkata.

"All scheduled operators will use the new integrated terminal. The earlier proposal of continuing low-cost carrier (LCC) operations from the existing terminal has been shelved as the new terminal with an annual capacity of 20 million passengers needs to be utilized," said airport director B P Sharma.

At present, Kolkata airport handles around 9 million passengers. Hence, once all airlines start operating from the new terminal, only around half the capacity will be utilized. In Delhi, full-service domestic carriers Air India and Jet Airways operate from the futuristic Terminal 3. LCCs IndiGo, SpiceJet and Go Airways operate flights from more modest Terminal 1D.

While the integrated terminal is expected to be ceremonially opened in October or November, the transition involving shifting of airlines from existing terminal to the new one will take three to four months. Airlines expect migration to the new terminal to be completed only by March 2013. It is only then that the domestic and international terminals will be closed down.

"Carriers have already begun setting up their offices in the basement. Airline lounges on the level above departure will happen during the transition phase. For each airline, all operations have to be shifted from the existing terminal to the new one overnight. They will get four to five hours when there are no passenger movements to complete the migration," an airline official said.

While all domestic airlines will migrate at night, for international airlines, the shift will happen according to the flight schedule. West Asian and South East Asian airlines that operate flights at night will have to do the migration during the day while Biman Bangladesh, GMG and Air India are likely to do it at night. It will, however, be a challenge for Emirates that operates 12 flights a week, including twice daily operations on five days.

Once the operations shift completely, the old terminals will be shut. However, the international terminal may be reopened for Haj flights during the pilgrimage. Saudi Arabian Airlines operates chartered flights during the period, ferrying over 3,500 passengers to Mecca and Medina and back.

"The requirement of Haj pilgrims is different from regular passengers. Many arrive from faraway districts as well as other states in the region and stay in the terminal for long hours to catch the flight. Hence, it will make sense to operate the flights from that terminal," an airport official said.

The domestic terminal will be reopened only if regional airlines start operating from the city to other parts of Bengal or neighbouring states. If that happens, the terminal will be refurbished. At present, there are regional carriers in north, south, west and the northeast, but none in the east. Sources said the civil aviation ministry is planning a policy to encourage regional airline operations with ATR, CRJ and Cessna aircraft with capacity of 15 to 70 passengers.
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Sabya99

sumantra · Member Joined: 28 Oct 2007 Posts: 4685 Location: New Delhi

This is good news. Sabyasachi, your wait to see the new terminal will get longer, since you have a trip planned this year, right? On a different note, I wonder whether the writer omitted Kingfisher from the IGI T3 description on purpose!
Cheers, Sumantra.

sabya99 · Posted: Wed Aug 29, 2012 7:11 pm Post subject:

sabya99 · Posted: Wed Aug 29, 2012 10:08 pm Post subject:

IDTcem Kolkata airport photo site:

https://plus.google.com/photos/100694619661379570636/albums/5726000844170172673?banner=pwa&gpsrc=pwrd1#photos/100694619661379570636/albums/5726000844170172673

Latest photo update. Hope AAI learn to maintain this beautiful creation. They should hire private building contractors to run this terminal. Very Happy

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Sabya99

sumantra · Member Joined: 28 Oct 2007 Posts: 4685 Location: New Delhi

Ah, lucky you, to visit Kolkata in the middle of the next year, with the new terminal in place (hopefully). The pictures indeed look nice, and I hope that they maintain it well, too. I was shocked to read that the current domestic terminal is as recent as 1995 - it is shocking to see the pathetic condition of such a relatively recent structure. However, it is not that the city cannot maintain anything. The Metro (which I first rode as recently as March 2007) was indeed quite nice, clean and looked well-maintained.
Cheers, Sumantra.

sabya99 · Posted: Thu Aug 30, 2012 3:41 pm Post subject:

sumantra · Member Joined: 28 Oct 2007 Posts: 4685 Location: New Delhi

Sabyasachi, not to nitpick, but the plaque inside the domestic terminal reads 1995, not 1988. So the new terminal is not a double decker one? Some US airports have a single structure with both arriving and outgoing passengers on the same level (DTW is a case that comes to mind) while not very efficient, can make the cut, too.
Cheers, Sumantra.

sabya99 · Posted: Fri Aug 31, 2012 5:37 pm Post subject:

sumantra · Member Joined: 28 Oct 2007 Posts: 4685 Location: New Delhi

sabya99 · Posted: Tue Sep 04, 2012 10:28 pm Post subject:

Flights from Kolkata to become expensive from January

http://www.thehindu.com/business/Industry/article3858844.ece

Emboldened by the levy of user development fee (UDF) by private airport operators in Delhi, Airports Authority of India (AAI) has also moved a proposal to levy UDF on domestic and international passengers at the Kolkata airport from January 1, 2013, making flight operations expensive for passengers and cargo movement.
Government sources in the Civil Aviation Ministry said that AAI, which owns and maintains the Kolkata Airport, had already got the nod of Airports Economic Regulatory Authority (AERA) for its proposal, and only consultations with the stakeholders were left to be held before the actual notification was issued.
Under the new rule, UDF of Rs.400 on every flying domestic passenger and Rs.1,000 on an international passenger will be levied from January 1 next year. Based on the traffic levels of 2011-12, AAI would earn about Rs.500 crore from the proposed UDF levies. During 2011-12, the airport handled 8.7 million domestic and 1.6 million international passengers.
There is more bad news for the passengers as AAI has proposed an increase of 118 per cent in the landing fee for international airlines. For domestic airlines, the airport operator has proposed a 48 per cent increase in landing charges. The enhanced landing charges are likely to come into force from November 1 this year.
With domestic and international airlines already protesting against the 346 per cent hike in airport charges by Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) and also the proposed hike in airport charges at the newly-constructed Chennai airport, it is not clear as to how the airlines will handle the latest hike. Industry experts were of the view that any hike in airport charges would certainly be passed on to the consumers. AERA also proposes to approve AAI’s plan for an 8 per cent increase in prevailing cargo rates from November 1 this year. Besides, it has proposed a further 8 per cent increase in cargo rates at the beginning of fiscal 2013, 2014 and 2015.
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Sabya99

Nimish · Posted: Tue Sep 04, 2012 11:58 pm Post subject:

^^ I think we might as well just increase that Rs. 223 PSF charge (whatever it's called) and make it Rs. 800 or Rs. 8000. Why do this increase one airport at a time, have multiple howls of protest etc?
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We miss you Nalini!

sabya99 · Posted: Wed Sep 05, 2012 6:46 am Post subject:

Nimish · Posted: Wed Sep 05, 2012 11:23 am Post subject:

^^ Sabya, you make valid points. However I'd like to clarify, I was being partially sarcastic in my previous comment, essentially talking about how MAA had some hikes announced recently, and now a few week later, we see CCU. What next? NAG? IXE? IXL? Seems like AAI is out to make much more money, and my comment was on the need for the AAI to make up it's mind and announce a uniform policy for these charges, not ad-hoc announcements every other day.
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We miss you Nalini!