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Mangaluru International Airport privatization process catches pace
NIIF plans aggressive foray into airport sector, hunts for investors

Sources said the NIIF had tied up with Zurich Airport to bid for the airports. “The NIIF has partnered Zurich Airport to bid for the airports in Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Lucknow and Mangaluru,” said a source

Airstrip project in Idukki and Kasargod by Mahindra Aerospace all set to take wings

Foundation stone for terminal building expansion at Mangaluru airport on Feb 22
Work on Mangaluru airport terminal expansion begins

'Acquire land for airport runway expansion'
Flights to Pune, Goa, Kolkata in the offing: MP

Adani group wins bid to operate Thiruvananthapuram and Mangaluru airport
Adani Group highest bidder for operating, developing five airports

The group has pipped GMR Group, the leading airport developer and operator, to emerge the winner for becoming the concessionaire of the Airports Authority of India (AAI) managed airports in the country- Thiruvananthapuram, Mangaluru, Ahmedabad, Jaipur and Lucknow when the financial bids were opened in New Delhi on Monday, AAI sources told The Hindu.

With Guwahati, Adani Group wins rights for all six airports

Chennai, hub of air traffic, may soon slip

Chennai: Adani Enterprises winning bids to develop Trivandrum and Mangaluru airports, two cities which have good potential for international traffic, has cast shadows on the progress of Chennai.

Though Chennai is a port city, there are only two direct flights to Europe — London and Paris. The airport cannot handle A380 planes which is why Hyderabad is slotted as a designated airport for unscheduled or emergency landing for overflying A380 planes.

As if Adani is going to develop Mangaluru for A380!

Mangaluru International Airport sees sluggish footfall after Kannur airport opens

Data from MIA shows KIA in Kerala, about 150km away from Mangaluru, has poached passengers. For example in January, the number of international flights dropped by 25.3% and international passengers by 18% compared to January 2018.

In January 2018, 446 international flights operated from Mangaluru, while this year, only 333 international flights have landed in MIA. The airport saw a total 54,540 international passengers in January 2019 against 67,194 passengers in January 2018.

Even domestic passenger footfall, which authorities had expected to rise, has taken a hit. It has nosedived by 18% in January 2019, despite it being the holiday season. Only 1.2 lakh domestic passengers were handled this January, while it was 1.4 lakh last January.

Adani getting control of 6 airports? Uncertainty looms as matter missing on Cabinet’s agenda
Civil Aviation ministry breaks ranks with Modi govt, says states not consulted in leasing airports to Adani
Adani to pay 3 lakh cr for operating 6 airports
Uncertainty looms over Adani Group's entry into aviation space

Emirates signs codeshare deal with India's SpiceJet for six cities (including Mangaluru)

Deficiency of flights while export is increasing 2

Expanding runway at city airport not feasible, Aviation Ministry tells LS


Mangaluru-Delhi flight inaugurated at MIA

With rail, road connectivity restored, airfares drop

Mangaluru Airport twitter account is inactive

Mangaluru International Airport brightens with LEDs

Government Approves Leasing of Ahmedabad, Lucknow and Mangalore Airports to Highest Bidder, Adani Enterprises
Adani Enterprises incorporates subsidiary Adani Managalore International Airport

New rapid emergency operation vehicle arrives at MIA

Rapid emergency operation vehicle

This is the latest vehicle which can reach the disaster site quickly with the capacity to reach 80kmph within 25 seconds. If in case there is a fire incident in the airport, the vehicle can reach there in seconds. It can carry a load of 6,000 liters of water and 800 liters of fire retarding foam. It also has modern equipment which can be used to remove fallen trees and branches during emergencies. Besides, it has hi-mast lights and the entire system is computerized. A crew of 5 can travel in the vehicle.

IndiGo to commence Delhi-Mangalore service in Oct-2019
Mangaluru-Delhi: Another flight introduced

Mangaluru airport severely hit as Kannur is fliers’ new destination

One of the main reasons the locals prefer KIA is the flight fares. Most of the flights from Kannur to Gulf countries are cheaper when compared to Mangaluru. Sometimes, the fare difference comes up to Rs 10,000.

Mabiya said that a memorandum was submitted twice to Dakshina Kannada MP to make changes in flight timings at Mangaluru Airport. Yet, no action was taken. “Now the airport in Mangaluru is of no use and flights are not scheduled as per the convenience of passengers. Hence, it’s natural that passengers prefer Kannur airport over Mangaluru,” he adds.

Expats give a slip to M'luru, fly from Kannur airport to save time, money
Kannur airport preferred over Mangaluru due to airfare pricing – No solution yet
KCCI announces action plan for next year

When asked about Kannur airport giving tough competition to Mangaluru airport, Isaac Vas said, “We have discussed with the representatives of the airlines. Passenger traffic has not come down and the gulf airlines are functioning as usual. There is tax rebate at Kannur airport, it is said. The timings for Kuwait is not so convenient for the passengers at MIA compared to Kannur airport.”

Privatising airports has brought gains. Here’s what needs to be done to make them high-yield assets.

AAI on track with its terminal building expansion project for September 2020

MIA introduces slew of safety measures for passengers, aircraft

Mangaluru: In a move that will vastly enhance safety standards at Mangalore International Airport (MIA), Airports Authority of India (AAI) has taken up phase II work of parallel taxiway and widening of runway safety basic strip area. Incidentally, phase I work on the parallel taxiway measuring around 550 metres each, in two stretches, was completed in December 2016, and work on the balance 1,350 metres of this taxiway is presently under way.

Completion of the work will ensure that the turnaround time for aircraft landing and taking off from MIA will be vastly reduced, says V V Rao, airport director, MIA. With reduced occupancy time of the active runway, passengers too will save on time with timely arrivals and take-offs, Rao told TOI, adding even the airlines will save on pricey aviation turbine fuel that they would otherwise have to use for taxiing and idling purposes.

The move to double the runway safety basic strip area from the current width of 75metres, from the centre of the runway, will also ensure greater safety for aircraft using the airport. This basic strip area is usually an unpaved area flanking the main runway, Rajeev Kumar Gupta, joint general manager (engineering-civil), MIA, said. AAI needs 33 acres on the South (Adyapady) side of the runway to complete the work to a length of 2,500 metres, he said.

AAI has already commenced work on this project to a length of 1,500 metres on the Malavoor side, and the balance work will be executed once the Dakshina Kannada district administration hands over the remaining 1,000 metres of land (approximately 33 acres), for which a public hearing has already been done, he noted. The strip runs the entire length of the runway, and is an important safety feature for the airport, with a table-top runway, he added.

AAI has enhanced the runway end safety area (RESA) on both sides of the runway to 240mx90m against the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) recommendation of 90mx90m, he said, adding this was 174m x 90 m along runway 24 and 240 m x 90 m along runway 6. This RESA is more than adequate for the 4D category that MIA is, and for the kind of aircraft that the airport presently handles, Gupta added.

ಮಂಗಳೂರು ಏರ್ಪೋರ್ಟ್: ವರ್ಷದ ಬಳಿಕ “ಅದಾನಿ’ ಸುಪರ್ದಿಗೆ
Adani Group begins airport takeover process

Runway expansion is on its priority list. The company has currently undertaken scrutiny of airport assets, staff functioning, source of income, security system, airlines operating from here and other things. Experts deputed by the company are busy with this task.

As Adani Group will invest huge amounts towards developing the airport, hike in per passenger charges, monthly rent of commercial stalls, and charges for services being availed by customers may go up along with the parking fee. Charges for the aircrafts touching down and parked in hangars here may also go up, it is said. It is learnt that the group plans to set up 'Adani Airports Ltd' exclusively for managing airports.

Adani plans to build separate complex malls at the airport here and to work to make it more passenger-friendly. Kishore Alva, president of Adani Group in Karnataka, said that it may take a year for the government to complete all processes and hand over the airport to the company.

I don't think Adani Group is going to spend so much money on Mangaluru airport and then hike passenger service fees when economically cheaper (thanks to Udan?) Kannur airport is already giving tough competition. Mangaluru airport is struggling when other airports like Belagavi are getting connected to Tirupati, Varanasi etc through Udan scheme! Whether runway expansion within a scheduled time is a clause in the contract between Adani & the government? Otherwise runway expansion promise is just a promise to pacify public protesting against take over.

Decrease in Mangaluru-Mumbai flight frequency

Summa: Number of passengers travelling through MIA is increasing year after year. But number of daily flights between Mangaluru & Mumbai have decreased from seven to three. Air India direct flight used to be full but now after conversion to indirect flight via Coimbatore flight load has come down by half. But flight charges have increased.

Whether number of passengers is really increasing (as per first statement in above summary) even after competition from Kannur? Does pulling out direct flight mean that the government wants to discourage travelling by flights?