The new domestic departure terminal 1D at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) at New Delhi will commence operations in two phases from April 11 and April 18.

With the exception of Go Air, all airlines from the old departure terminal 1B will move to terminal 1D, along with Kingfisher Airlines who will shift from terminal 1A. Go Air will shift to terminal 1A. State carrier Air India will remain in terminal 1A.

On April 11, only Jet Airways and and its low cost subsidiary Jetlite will move to the new terminal, since they are the dominant private airline at IGIA. A week later, on April 18, after these two airlines would have settled down in the new terminal, the operations of all other airlines from terminal 1B like SpiceJet and IndiGo, along with Kingfisher will be shifted.

To provide for time to shift, the last departure from the old terminals is planned around 22:30 (10.30 pm) local on April 10 and April 17 respectively. The operations will recommence at terminal 1D at 05:00 the following mornings.

IGIA airport operator Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) has taken the help of a team from Munich airport to assist in the shift and also conduct the operational readiness and airport transfer (ORAT).

The new domestic departure terminal T1D at New Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) was inaugurated today by Mr. Praful Patel India's Civil Aviation minister.

The new terminal is located between the existing Domestic Arrival T1C and Domestic Departure T1A, and will raise the capacity of domestic departures to 10 million passengers per annum.

The terminal is a dual level terminal with departures at the upper level. It features eight entry gates, and a four layer in-line baggage X-ray system which will free passengers from having to get their check in bags scanned prior to check-in. There are 72 check-in counters and 16 self check-in kiosks spread across 8 rows. The terminal features the CUTE or Common Use Terminal Equipment system, which allows dynamic allocation of counters to airlines depending on need.

Hopefully the CISF would man all 16 channels of the security check to ensure quick and smooth passage for travellers.

The large departure lounge features food and beverage outlets, lounges and retail areas spread across 2 levels.

The airport operator DIAL has announced availability of Wi-fi internet connectivity, but details are not provided.

Flight boarding will take place at the lower level via coach bus to the aircraft via 16 boarding gates. Again it remains to be seen, how many of these gates are operated in parallel by the CISF.

In addition, a special ‘Contact Zone’ service will be available near the terminal entrance to provide facilities for passengers with special needs - passing through the Airport. These would include wheel-chair assistance for physically challenged passengers, assistance for unaccompanied minors amongst others.

We, in Bangalore, have been debating the terminal at the new Bengaluru International Airport (BIA).

I came across a very interesting story entitled What happens when an airline designs an airport? It is most definitely worth a read.