Most travellers to Bengaluru International Airport are aware of the 80 km/h (50 mph) speed limit on the highway and the two "Police Interceptor" vehicles to catch speeders and video capture them in the act.

These anonymous photographs shows a police Jeep speeding, but being let off, while a private citizen who was also speeding was hauled up at the same time.

It appears that some speeders are more equal than others.

Police Jeep registration KA-02-G-991 travelling at over 100km/h on the highway approaching Air Force Station Yelahanka. Observe the lack of an English number plate as specified by the RTO.


The Jeep approaches the "Interceptor" at over 100km/h. In the adjacent lane a Maruti Baleno is also speeding.



The traffic constable hauls up the Maruti Baleno for speeding making the car pull over. The police Jeep brakes as the constable moves to haul it in as well.


The inspector manning the "interceptor" realises that a senior officer is in the Jeep, salutes and lets the Jeep proceed.



The police Jeep speeds away with a puff of exhaust smoke while the private citizen is hauled in.


I have tremendous respect for the traffic police, and wish the rest of Bangaloreans also do. But when the police indulge in such blatant "selective enforcement" it lowers their prestige, their respect, and most important, their moral authority.

These photographs by someone (not me) who was travelling from the airport to the city.

Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) has beaten four other competing airports in the Indian sub-continent and bagged the Routes Asia Airport Marketing award from its customers -- the airlines.

Congratulations to Marcel Hungerbuehler and his team, most especially Ashutosh Chandra who leads airline marketing efforts at BIAL.

The airlines within Asia nominated five airports whose marketing efforts during 2009 made a real impact on their future network development plans.

The airlines considered the efficient and useful marketing activities of the airports on their network, by geographical region, irrespective of their size.

The award was based on how creatively an airport has made the most of its available resources, initiatives taken to improve the airport’s infrastructure, the terminal and runway, and on how best an airport tried to develop airline relationships, keep existing routes and secure new ones. The airports were also judged on the basis of new routes launched and growth in traffic.

BIA has attracted seven new airlines to Bangalore, though Gulf Air has withdrawn service till end October due to the slide in air traffic.

However, the international airlines have a grouse with the BIAL management. Domestic carriers are defaulting on payments and then deducting 15 per cent to make "timely" payments. International airlines are paying on time but are being denied any rebates.

I really feel for the BIAL management. They are in a very tight spot, and the financial woes of Kingfisher Airlines who operates 40 per cent of Bangalore's flights on adds to their worries.

Hopefully this minor spat should get resolved soon.

I hope you enjoy the pictures. The high resolution versions are on my Flickr site.

If you like this please share the link with your friends and networks via the links below.

I had gone to Bengaluru International Airport for a meeting, and took my camera along. Got some great shots of Kingfisher Airlines and Jet Airways at the field. Hope you enjoy. Visit my photo album on Flickr.

VT-VJK (the first KFA A330), performing flight IT2 coming in from London Heathrow. Sorry about the heat haze. The flight comes in the afternoon.


VT-VJN performing flight IT001 takes off for its ten hour trip to London.


Observe the lack of winglets on this Jet Airways Boeing 737-800 Next Generation


A nice northerly wind ensured all the planes showed me their belly while taking-off


One of Kingfisher's newer ATR72-500s (model AT72-212A)



I wonder who came or departed on this Cessna 525B Citation Jet 3?
Please do leave a comment, and spread the word.

During my visit to the Bengaluru International Airport on March 14th, I observed a Dragonair Airbus A330 B-HWH parked on the apron at 08:00

Obviously something was wrong. Normally the Dragonair flight is scheduled to arrive at 01:40 and leave by 02:40.

Found out today that the Dragonair aircraft had an engine problem on the outbound flight back to Hong Kong early morning on Tuesday, March 10th. Passengers were dis-embarked and put on flights of other airlines. A Cathay Pacific Boeing 747 freighter flew a new engine and a team of engineers to Bangalore on the 13th, and the Dragonair A330 was finally fixed and flew out on the 14th afternoon, about 8 hours after the picture was taken, five days after she was grounded.

Been to Bengaluru International Airport over the last fortnight, and took some photos early in the morning with planes taking-off and landing in to the sun.

Some of the planes I got; VT-JNV, VT-JGQ, VT-INE, VT-INS, VT-INF, VT-SGE, 9V-SFF, VT-DKA, G-OJIB (Ed Force One), VT-JNZ, Luftwaffe A310 10-27, VT-EPH, VT-JCD and a few others.



Hope you enjoy the shots. You are welcome to use these subject to the Creative Commons license.

As usual your comments are always welcome.

I received call earlier this evening from the news media soliciting my reactions to the news that Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa has proposed to the Union Government the renaming of the Bengaluru International Airport, after the founder founder of Bangalore, Kempegowda.

The name of an airport may not mean much, but I am happy and thankful that the airport is being named after a historical figure of stature and respect, and not some politician. I am sick and tired of seeing Indira Gandhi this, or Rajiv Gandhi that, or Sanjay Gandhi that, or Kamaraj this, or Anna that.

However a word of caution. In India, we have an habit of making acronyms of everything. Kempegowda International Airport will be shortened to KIA, which in military jargon is "Killed In Action".

The Aero India 2009 continues to draw large crowds, and for today and tomorrow, a huge crush of footfalls is expected.

Aerial displays in the morning and afternoon sessions are as spectacular and breathtaking as in any major air show held worldwide. While the public focusses on the magnificent flying machines and their daredevil pilots, they remain blissfully unaware of the singular edifice that facilitates and coordinates all the flying activity – the Air Traffic Control (ATC) - the heart of the air show, at Air Force Station (AFS) Yelahanka (VOYK).

Activity at the ATC begin before dawn and continue well beyond dusk. As the premiere training station for all Indian Air Force (IAF) transport wing, AFS Yelahanka, is one of the busiest military airfields in the country. Not only does it handle over 60,000 movements annually, it also has to contend with two major airfields - Bengaluru International Airport (BIA), just 4 nm to the north, and the HAL airport 10nm south. A task well handled by Chief Operations Officer (COO), Wing Commander N.V.M. Unnithan and his team.

Assisting him and bristling with activity, a 24x7 manned 'Base Operations Room' controls all aspects of the flying and coordinating with various agencies including 'flying display director', routine movements, VIP protocol, ground handling agencies, BIA, and HAL remains fully operational at the ATC tower.

While an anxious F-16 pilot, USAF Lieutenant Mike Benson, coordinating the flight schedule of the C-130 Hercules, was happy after the arrangements were explained by the COO, Captain Uphoff and Lieutenant Michael Schumacher (just a coincidence) of the German Air Force's Fighter Wing-73, technical team members of the Eurofighter Typhoon dropped by to thank the officials at the ATC, a gesture symbolic of the universal spirit exemplified at the air show.

Preparations began six months in advance. Coordination meetings were crucial as Aero India 2009 was the first air show since the opening of new airport (BIA) last year. With a lateral separation between the airfields of just 4.3 nautical miles it was imperative to halt all civilian flights at BIA during the air displays. Most visiting aircraft of the IAF had to be housed at HAL due to the space constraints at Yelahanka. There is full cooperation between all the three airports and the flight displays are going perfect as expected.

The proximity of the flight paths at Yelahanka and BIA is demonstrated by this photograph of the F16IN SuperViper by my photography guru and guide, Praveen Sundaram a.k.a. Photoyogi. Do take the time to check his photo-stream.

Significant improvements in airfield infrastructure, resurfacing of the taxi-track, airfield links, refitting of the runway lighting, drainage of the 8,500 feet long runway were completed in just four months, ahead of the show, as per senior ATC officer, Wing Commander Sunil Ninan.

Seated on the console panels in a glass-encased environment, the cool demeanour of the five ATC officers manning the consoles betray little of the highly stressful role the controllers undergo. The banner displayed at the entrance says it all - 'You are about to witness the most stressful profession in the world'.

While many in Indian commercial aviation complain about the accents of expatriate pilots, at Aero India there are many pilots from different countries, speaking in different accents, and the ATC controllers are equally adept at picking up the nuances, ensuring unambiguous and crystal clear communication between the pilots and ATC.

Flight safety remains paramount; all flight paths including the aerial displays, and restrictions are designed with risk mitigation in mind. AFS Yelahanka has the township of Yelahanka to the south, and is bounded to the north and east by BIA and its resultant development.

In an effort to restrict the bird activity especially during the flying displays that are flown at low-levels, adequate aerial surveys were done in the period leading to the air show. Ten 'bird scare' teams mounted on specially procured silent electric bikes prowl the entire airfield with double-barrel guns in the airfield area. In addition, 'whistlers', a pyro-technique device emitting high frequency, high-pitch sound that irritate the birds are being effectively used.

Closure of the fish, poultry, and meat markets in the near vicinity on specified days and covering water bodies (lakes and ponds) with nets are some of the initiatives undertaken by the IAF personnel at the base.

Despite these steps, birds are present in plenty, and BBMP officials have to get serious about sanitation and open-air meat markets in the Yelahanka, Devanahalli and Ejipura area

The meteorological forecasts during the air show got a boost with the installation of a 'Numerical Weather Prediction Module' enabling 24-hours observation watch, and 18-hours forecast watch, informed Wing Commander VK Choudhary, senior Met Officer at the base.

We have to applaud the efforts of all the people involved. From the policeman at Hebbal flyover, ensuring traffic gets to AFS Yelahanka quickly, to the IAF personnel at the base, the exhibitors, the display teams, pilots, and support crews, the government, and the organisers. It is a herculean effort executed with seamless precision and complete cooperation. Last, and certainly not the least, I hats off to the tireless efforts of the entire team at the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), led by Greeta Varughese and Sourav Narayan Biswas. They have all been working 20+ hour days for the last two weeks, to ensure the show is an unbridled success it is.

Stay tuned for a photo-essay........

The Indian Express is reporting

The Joint House Committee set up to probe into the alleged lapses in the establishment of Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) will submit its final report on February 16.

The 20-member house committee headed by Chickpet MLA Hemachandra Sagar met the BIA officials on Monday.

Committee members said that the final report will be submitted to Assembly Speaker Jagadish Shettar on February 16. To lend credence to the report the members visited other airports in the country apart from inspecting facilities at BIA.

The Committee has examined if the airport’s promoters have been able to fully utilise the 4,000 acres of land allotted to it and reasons have been ascertained as to why the project’s cost shot up to Rs 2,700 crore from the initial estimate of Rs 1,350 crore.

The alleged violation of terms and conditions by BIAL during the construction was also under the Committee’s scanner. The Committee also looked at the facilities available at the airport, the absence of VIP lounge, outsourcing of the taxi services to private operators and permission for construction of second terminal at the airport.

It is expected to make recommendations on how to give a face-lift to the airport in line with other international airports.

This last paragraph is where I start shaking my head. I could be wrong, but I do not believe that any of these legislators have the required knowledge or experience, to offer the specialised recommendations needed for an airport.

There is a VIP terminal for legitimate VIPs as defined by Government of India. The cited lack of a VIP lounge is for the non-defined "self-appointed" VIPs who would like their entourage of flunkies to accompany them right till the aircraft. The legislators appear to be focussing on the mundane and utterly unneeded facilities, instead of the macro and long term needs.

The JHC should bring in professional assessors from the aviation world, airlines, industry, and passengers to sincerely address the aviation needs of Bangalore and its residents.

There are strong rumours that the investigation has been carried out at the behest of a particular community who have massive land holdings near the new airport, and there are fears that the "recommendations" will be aligned to the needs of this community.

The Supreme Court today stayed the Karnataka High Court judgement that quashed the decision of Bangalore International Airport Ltd. (BIAL), operator of the Bengaluru International Airport at Bangalore, to award the duty-free shops contract to Nuance Group AG of Switzerland and Shoppers Stop.

On December 19 2008, on a plea by Flemingo Duty Free Shops Pvt. Ltd., the Karnataka High Court had set aside the award and directed BIAL to reissue fresh tender documents within 45 days.

Dubai-based travel retail business company, Flemingo, which operates duty-free shops at airports and sea ports, had alleged that it was wrongly excluded from the tender for setting up duty-free shops at the new airport.

A bench headed by Justice K G Balakrishnan asked the parties to maintain status quo till February 16, the notified date of hearing.

Earlier, the apex court stayed the Bombay High Court judgement that had allowed a similar petition of Flemingo Duty Free Shops Pvt. Ltd. and quashed a similar decision of Mumbai International Airport Ltd. (MIAL), operator of Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, to award the duty-free shops contract to DFS India.

Both High Courts had held that MIAL and BIAL were a 'state' within the meaning of Article 12 of the Constitution.

Both the Nuance Group and DFS Ventures, Singapore had challenged the respective High Courts' rulings.

This case of significance to both airport's private operators. If the Supreme Court upholds the lower courts' decisions, it will require operators to follow public tendering processes, which airport operators feel will hamper their ability to make procurement decisions.

A quiet change took place at Bengaluru International Airport Limited (BIAL), the operator of Bengaluru International Airport.

Marcel Hungerbuehler took over as CEO of BIAL on February 1st, 2009 from Albert Brunner. Prior to this, Marcel was the the company’s COO for two years.

Those inside the industry know how instrumental Marcel was, in the start-up process and the operations of the Bengaluru International Airport. From personal experience, he is a methodical, pragmatic and engaging leader, and exactly the type BIAL needs during these turbulent times.

During his 40 years in the aviation industry, Marcel has held various high level management positions including Swissair and Swissport. An aviation all-rounder, he has held positions in various functions in operations and sales and marketing. He was Swissair’s Area Manager Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia, District Manager UK and Ireland and Area Manager Asia and Middle East.

Before moving to BIAL, Marcel Hungerbuehler was Head of Swissport Zurich, the largest Ground Handling Company at Zurich Airport.

Congratulations Marcel.

Former CEO, Albert Brunner, is heading for the warm climes of the Caribbean for his next posting.

In my previous article I highlighted the faulty glideslope at Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) being a contributor to delays, especially in times of fog. Last Sunday January 24, 2009, BIA, again, experienced significant delays due to fog.

This issue has been hanging fire at Bengaluru International Airport since opening day.

I came across an article by Capt. A. Ranganathan, an Airline Instructor Pilot on Boeing 737 with a flying experience of 20,000 hrs, which explains the situation more technically, and with the right dose of humour.

To err is human but when an error is committed repeatedly, one must credit them with complete incompetence. They have proved that they are champions in “Bending it like Beckham”!

New Greenfield airports are constructed in Bangalore and Hyderabad. The runways are located in areas free of obstacles and the builders install PAPIs (Precision Approach Path Indicators) at a perfect 3° angle. PAPIs are mandatory equipment required by ICAO for airfields where airliner jets operate. These assist pilots to complete a precise landing in the touch down zone after they transition from an instrument approach. All the four runways, two in each city, had these installed at 3° angle.

The AAI installed the ILS (Instrument Landing System) for all the four runways. And they showed why they are great fans of the footballer. They bent the glide slope angles to 3.30° and 3.40°, instead of synchronising them with the 3° PAPIs. With this master-stroke, they killed the two airports from being capable of operating flights in CAT 2 and CAT 3 ILS conditions in fog. The recent diversions from Bangalore and Hyderabad, and the resultant air traffic congestion at Mumbai could have been avoided if the ILS Glide Slope had been less than 3.25° . The airport owners should have insisted on the AAI redoing the glide slopes. Instead, they bend the PAPI angles up to synchronise with the ILS! This is progressive thinking! Airports which should have functioned ‘24 x 365’ hours in a year are restricted to operations ONLY when the visibility is more than 550 metres,

High Glide Slope angles at Hyderabad and Bangalore. Photos: Naverus and Capt. A. Ranganathan

The implications do not stop there. All aircraft have a structural limit for their landing gear. The maximum rate of descent permitted is 600 feet per minute. A glide slope up to 3.25° will ensure a controlled flare and landing within this limit. Any higher angle will require a descent rate of 800 to 900FPM. A positive flare in the correct time is required. Any delay can result in a hard landing or a late touch down. These are a major threat while landing in heavy rain conditions. If the rain condition is accompanied by changing winds, especially tail winds, it becomes a dangerous recipe.

Read the full article here.

The Sunday Times of India has published an article detailing the slamming of the Ministry of Civil Aviation by the Standing Parliamentary Committee on Transport and Tourism.

Minister for Civil Aviation, Mr. Praful Patel, frequently flies in to Bangalore HAL airport, on board an aircraft owned by Delhi and Hyderabad airport promoters GMR.

HAL airport closure violated

In a damning rebuke to the central government, a parliamentary panel has stated that the closure of HAL airport was a clear violation of the due process. The department-related parliamentary standing committee on transport, tourism and culture headed by Sitaram Yechury said in its report, a copy of which is available with the STOI (Sunday Times of India), "The closure of HAL airport was not mentioned in the tender for Bengaluru Greenfield Airport. Naturally, all the parties who participated in the tender process would have made their offers on this basis only. Making an offer of closure of HAL Airport after the Notice Inviting Tender (NIT), appears to be a clear violation of the due process," the report that was presented to the Rajya Sabha and laid on the table of the Lok Sabha explains.

As regards the restriction on having another airport within 150 km of the existing airport, granting permission to start a new Greenfield Airport within that radius prima facie seems to be in violation of the government policy on airport infrastructure.

As per the policy, if another airport is allowed within an aerial distance of 150 km of an existing airport, a passenger-sharing formula has to be evolved. The government in the present case, not only allowed the new airport to share passengers but also closed down the existing profit-making airports. The closure of existing airports has been done in haste, the report objected.

"The Government of India appears to be unconcerned about the obligation of BIAL to construct and provide an airport as per the concession agreement. Even the area and capacity were not verified before permitting to open new and closing HAL airport. This appears to be an irregularity committed by GOI in this matter," the committee has also stated.

"Hundreds of crores of rupees were spent for developing infrastructure at the old airports both at Bengaluru and Hyderabad but it is lying unutilised due to the closure of old airports for commercial purposes. Another interesting fact is that the old airports at these two places are being used for operation of VIP flights, non-schedule flights, general aviation and helicopter taxis etc.

During the deliberations of committee, the AAI reported that there is absolutely no problem in operating of two airports simultaneously in a city. So, the committee recommends that the old airports may be used for short-haul flights, which are operating from the nearby airports, as it is more convenient. There is no reason or justification for keeping the hundreds of crores of worth infrastructure at the old airports idle just to be used for VIP and other flights.

The committee also notes that closure of HAL airport led to loss of jobs due to reduction in flights and due to closure of airline operators. Thousands of direct and indirect workers also lost their jobs including trolley retrievers, small time vendor, taxi drivers, auto drivers, loaders etc. Despite assurances by the respective managements they have not been accommodated in the new airports.

"Commercial Civil aviation activities are continuing in the Bangalore HAL with the consent of the management of BIAL and GOI, whereas the concessional Agreement and the notification issued by the GOI clearly prohibits any commercial aviation activity. This shows that if the government wants, they can operationalise the old airports not withstanding the agreement.

The paragraph of the article is in clear reference to the air taxi service operated by Air Deccan.

It appears the folks at Praja have obtained the minutes of the meetings of the Steering Committee for the new International Airport at Devanahalli (which has now become Bengaluru International Airport), under the Right To Information Act. I strongly suggest visiting the site and studying the document. It is an eye opener and provides a wealth of information on the thinking of the government.

In particular, I was rather shocked to read the minutes of the eighth meeting. It was interesting to see the unfair, but clever, tactics, the eventual winner, the Siemens consortium, used to eliminate the competition, rather than beat them.

Passengers departing from Bengaluru International Airport can enjoy wireless internet access.

Inside the terminal, using your GSM cell phone, send an SMS "WIFI BIAL" to 56677 and you will receive the wi-fi password on your cellphone. The speed is quite decent.

Alternately in the departure hall, fire up your laptop, switch on your wi-fi, open your browser and follow the on-screen instructions.

There is an FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) page at the airport website.

Bengaluru International Airport Ltd. (BIAL), the operator of the Bengaluru International Airport (BIA), has decided to levy the long pending User Development Fee (UDF) of Rs 260 on all outbound domestic passengers, from January 16, 2009.

According to an official release by BIAL yesterday, the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has given nod for levy of UDF.

Albert Brunner, CEO, BIAL said

"UDF is a crucial revenue stream for us although we have not been allowed to charge the amount we requested for. This is a beginning. The presently approved UDF is an ad-hoc. The final UDF will be decided by the ministry after further reviews or by the regulatory body appointed by the Government,”

With the crash in domestic traffic, monthly losses have zoomed in excess of Rs. 200 million per month, BIAL desperately needed the UDF. All development at the airport has been stopped by BIAL, with a lack of UDF being cited as the main reason.

Based on the September 2008 traffic, BIAL stands to earn about Rs. 66~70 million a month, which will not fully cover their shortfall. Their existing UDF request of Rs. 675 will allow them to fully cover their shortfall, but with the Ministry approving only Rs. 375 as UDF for Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) at Hyderabad, an airport which is larger both in size and investment than BIA, I see no way for the Government to approve BIAL's request and justify their decision. Added to this a figure of Rs. 675 is considered too exorbitant by everyone.

In my opinion, a UDF of Rs. 375 would be an acceptable compromise between the needs of BIAL and the cost on passengers. Keeping in mind the total crash in regional air traffic, a segment where costs are critical, it might behoove BIAL to keep the UDF at the presently approved Rs. 260 for regional flights.

In the mean time, to make ends meet, BIAL will have to critically analyse, and reduce their expenditure. BIAL should also put the aero-city and other real-estate projects on top priority for additional income.

BIAL, the promoter of Bengaluru International Airport, has been making steady progress in streamlining operations, and increasing functionality and usability at airport, especially in the non-passenger areas, but BIAL had a litany of woes yesterday, which made for a terrible Friday, and left me shaking my head, commiserating with BIAL.

First, the Karnataka High Court ruled that the airport is a public institution, which has other ramifications for BIAL.

On a petition filed by Flemingo Duty Free Shops Limited of Mumbai challenging BIAL not considering their expression of interest to set up duty-free shops at the international airport, a division Bench, headed by Justice V Gopala Gowda, held that BIAL is an entity which comes under Article 12 of the Constitution and is subject to writ jurisdiction, consequently quashed the contract awarded to duty-free shops at the airport.

BIAL had said that as it was purely a private company, its actions were not subject to writ jurisdiction.

The court, while nullifying the contract given by the airport to Nuance Group AG of Switzerland for setting up of these shops, asked BIAL to redo the process from the expression of interest stage and complete it within 45 days.

This is a repeat of the June ruling of the Mumbai High Court against MIAL, the operator of Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport. In that case too, Flemingo was the petitioner.

No doubt, the Supreme Court, is the next stop for this saga.

Second, at around 4pm, passengers faced a harrowing day at the airport, when the servers handling the check-in for Jet Airways and Kingfisher crashed. These two airlines handle over 65% of the total traffic at Bangalore, and Friday 4pm is probably one of the highest periods in the week. Passenger queues immediately built-up, as did tempers and angst.

As per the Deccan Chronicle

"But after the servers crashed, the two airliners’ started issuing boarding passes manually. The manual ticketing was time-consuming. Passengers protested against the long delays. Additional staff were deputed to handle the ticketing and the situation was soon brought under control. But it took an hour to get the systems up and running," sources said.

Congrats to everyone in reacting to the situation and resolving it quickly.

As if this was not enough, more trouble came in the form of a repeat strike by the drivers of Meru Cabs, who had gone on strike earlier this week.

As per the Deccan Chronicle

In addition, passengers arriving at BIA found there were no cabs to take them into the city after drivers of Meru cab services called a snap stir and suspended services, for the second time this week. Many passengers were seen boarding the Volvo bus service to the city. The drivers, had been assured there would be a revision in the stipulated daily collection when they had a meeting with the management last week.

According to that arrangement, the company provides the drivers with cars while the drivers pay the company Rs 900 per day irrespective of their revenue. This rate was revised upwards to Rs 1,200 from December 1 which upset the drivers.

The meeting to resolve differences on Friday was inconclusive, a Meru cab driver said. "Not only has the company increased daily fees, it has added 250 cars to the existing fleet of 500 which has affected our business. This angered us and we called for strike. We will resume only after our demands are met," said Krishna Murthy, a driver.

When contacted. a Meru company spokesperson said all Meru services are temporarily suspended and services would resume soon. He declined to comment on the deadlock with the drivers. Meru is a major operator at the airport and has bagged more than 50 percent of the transport business.

I remind passengers, that there are two more taxi operators at the airport, and the wonderful BMTC Vayu Vajra Volvo bus service. There is no need to panic. Just click on the "BIA Bus and Taxi" link on the top menu for full details.

The remote location of Bengaluru International Airport adds to the responsibility of the airport promoters BIAL, to ensure proper and adequate facilities for the people who work at the airport. I have always maintained that it is imperative to take care of the people who take care of us. Their comfort ensures efficiency and alertness. Two vital aspects in any operation, more so in an airport.

This report by Express News is most concerning.

They have been guarding the airports round-the-clock for a week now after a red-alert was sounded that there could be possible air-borne attacks and hijacking of aircraft.

But, for the 40-odd Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) commandos posted at various locations at the Bengaluru International Airport (BIA), the world-class airport is nothing short of a parched fortress.

The commandos who are part of the Quick Reaction Team (QRT) which was formed after the Mumbai attacks and the sounding of the red-alert, on 12-hour duty, alleged that they have not been provided with basic facilities at the airport.

“We are treated badly whenever we head to the water container to quench our thirst. We are shooed away by the airport officials. They ask us to fetch water from elsewhere,” a CISF commando told Express.

The commandos who have been posted at the parking bays and outside the terminal area among other locations, said that facilities at the HAL airport were better when they were posted there.

“At HAL airport, it was the AAI which was at the helm of affairs. But here the private promoters are not bothered about the CISF,” added a commando who moved to the BIA upon the closure of the HAL airport.Besides, CISF commandos say that they have to confine themselves to vehicles for accommodation.

I feel that the Express reporters should have requested for a response from BIAL, to understand their situation, reasons, and given a more balanced story. Assuming this story is true, I am horrified. Denying drinking water is not the done thing, EVER.

A potentially explosive report in today's Deccan Chronicle

The state government has illegally helped the Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) to develop commercial real estate on some 200 acres of forest land. BIAL is developing a star hotel, restaurants and office space on this land — all in violation of the Union government’s rules, regulations and Acts. Documents available with the Deccan Chronicle reveal that the State government, which acquired 1,394 acres from the Forest department on a perpetual lease after taking approval from the Union ministry of environment and forests, has sub-leased the land to Bial. Bial is now aggravating the violation by developing real estate on 200 acres of this land for purely private profit, in violation of provisions of the Forest Conservation Act, 1980.

The state government, which was advised by the Ramanathan Committee to set up the airport at Devanahalli in the mid-90s, sought permission from the Union ministry to acquire the forest land for the infrastructure project. The Union ministry accorded the permission, but with a string of riders in its letter dated August 27, 2002, prominent among which is the condition that the status of the forest land should never be altered.

On December 17, 2002, the state Forest department transferred 1,394.2 acres to the Karnataka State Industrial Investment and Development Corporation (KSIIDC), which became the lessee. The forest area around Yarthiganahalli, Bettekote, Gangamuthanahalli bearing survey numbers 7, 8, 46, 55P, 23, 35, 88 and 12 were handed over to the KSIIDC, which was the nodal agency for the airport.

Following this, there was a lull in airport development activities for the next two years as the Bial and the State government got into a slugfest with each other over a mutually acceptable concession agreement. Then, in a move to honour its commitment to hand over 4,000-plus acres to Bial, the state altered the government order without taking the requisite permission from the Union ministry using the expedient of inserting text into the original order.

The state government simply issued a corrigendum on March 4, 2004, which reads: “In the sixth line of the order portion, after the word ‘KSIIDC’ and before the word ‘subject’ the following words shall be inserted — and to sub-lease the same by KSIIDC to Bangalore International Airport Limited.” The insertion was made to transfer the land from the KSIIDC to the Bial. The original land transfer order specifically mentions that the forest land will be in the custody of the KSIIDC.

The sub-lease was made in violation of the conditions set by the Union ministry, which had clearly stated in its 2002 approval order that in case of deviations or alterations a fresh reference had to be made to the ministry and clearance obtained. What followed the corrigendum was worse. The KSIIDC entered into a sub-lease agreement with the Bial on August 12, 2004 which allowed the private body to use the forest land for airport, airport-related activities and non-aeronautical activities as well.

By doing this, the state government, which first acquired the land on perpetual lease thereby becoming the lessee, now had sub-leased the land to Bial and become the lessor and allowed real estate development on forest land in violation of the Forest Conservation Act, 1980 and Forest (Conservation) Rules, 2003, which state that the use of forest land may be allowed for roads, bridges, running high-tension lines and such other infrastructure-related projects only. Even certain other infrastructure projects such as putting up power plants, ports and bus stations on forest land could be taken up only after obtaining permission from the Union ministries which they would give after studying the impact on the environment of such projects.

Even if the Bial were to be given a clean chit in this whole episode, since the consortium is simply going ahead with a masterplan that has the government’s stamp of approval on it, the fact remains that a five-star hotel and commercial office space are being constructed on forest land. Bial has also borrowed money against airport land, which includes the 1,394 acres of forest land in question, from the lead bank financing the project.

What should be the remedial steps taken ? Taking back the land is out of the question. It will hurt the airport operator BIAL beyond repair. At the same time protection of forests is vital. What will be the potential ramifications of this report on the Joint House Committee investigations, or the banking consortium ? As usual, comments are invited.

Two flights to Bangalore, one from London and another from Mumbai, were diverted to Chennai airport Thursday morning due to bad weather conditions at Bangalore.

The British Airways flight from London and the Indian Airlines flight from Mumbai were supposed to land at Bangalore airport at around 0600 hours. After the weather conditions became better at Bangalore airport, the flights left for Bengaluru from Chennai at around 0715 hours.

Quoting a Times of India report, a BIA spokesperson said, "There were no arrivals at all for three hours between 5.30 am and 8.30 am. There were only three departures from BIA on Thursday. Two flights, one from Mumbai and the other from London were diverted owing to the fog."

The new Bengaluru International Airport has a Category I ILS system, the same as in the old HAL airport. There has been a historical disruption of morning flights during the winter season.

As per PTI, as part of the ongoing initiatives to enhance Bengaluru International Airport's (BIA) infrastructure, a cargo village, the first of its kind, was inaugurated at the airport on Monday.

The facility, built at a cost of Rs 12 crore and completed in 10 months, would house 120 freight forwarders and 80 custom house agents, a release said.

The cargo village boasts of essential facilities for warehouse, such as banks, conference rooms, business centre help desk, staff canteen and parking facilities for 80 trucks.

Spread over 11 acres of land with adequate provision for future expansion facility, the cargo village located near the cargo terminal is expected to strengthen the city's position as a trade and commercial hub while ensuring faster clearance of import and export consignments from the cargo terminals at the airport, it said.

BIAL's current facilities included two operational cargo terminals, built and operated by Menzies Aviation-Bobba ,and Air India-SATS Joint Venture. The former has initial capacity to handle 150.000 metric tons for cargo while the later has two-floor warehouse with capacity of 200,000 metric tons.

Till date the airport has handled 70,905 tons of cargo. Bangalore's current annual cargo requirement stands at 170,000 tons, the release said.