Mangalore: Bajpe international Airport Gets Additional Baggage X-Ray Facility

Daijiworld Media Network—Mangalore (RD/CN) Pics: Dayanand Kukkaje
Mangalore, Jul 29: The additional baggage x-ray facility installed at Bajpe international airport was inaugurated by deputy commissioner (DC) Maheshwar Rao, on Tuesday, July 29.
The earlier baggage x-ray facility was installed in the departure and arrival lounge and was inaugurated by Dr Veerendra Heggade, Dharmadhikari of Sri Kshetra Dharmastala Manjunatheshwar, a few days ago.
The additional x-ray has been installed to speed up screening of baggage after the increase in the number domestic and international flights in recent times. Moreover, till the exclusive international terminus becomes operational in 2009 at Kenjar, near Maravoor, these additional facilities will benefit the passengers.
M R Vasudev, airport director, Chellamprasad, Mangalore chief, Air India Express (AIE), Nagesh Shetty, Mangalore chief of Indian, officers of the Airports Authority of India (AAI), AIE, and staff of private airlines were present on the occasion.

Mangalore airport tops satisfaction survey

GEARING UP: A file photo of M.R. Vasudeva, director, Mangalore Airport, inspecting the progress of work on the new integrated terminal building at Bajpe Airport.

The Hindu -Raviprasad Kamila
SPIL has been conducting the six-monthly study since 2007; it is scheduled to end next year
Jammu shares the top spot with Bajpe among the 25 airports surveyed
Exercise aims at rectifying the areas of lacunae

MANGALORE: Customers have ranked Mangalore and Jammu airports high among the 25 domestic airports in the country in a customer satisfaction survey conducted recently.
Spectrum Planning (India) Ltd (SPIL) conducted the survey for the Airport Authority of India (AAI) in February and March this year. Both Mangalore and Jammu airports secured 86 per cent satisfaction score in the survey. Assignment
The executive summary of the survey says that the AAI has assigned the company to conduct four rounds of survey between 2007 and 2009 with a six-month interval. The February-March 2008 survey was the third one. The company conducted the survey of 13 international airports in the country, separately. The objective of the survey is to assess the opinion of customers on the facilities and services and to identify new services and improve facilities to make the airports more customer friendly. The survey aimed at assessing the attitude of the service providers at airports, the executive summary said.Survey report
According to the survey, the overall customer satisfaction index (CSI) of Mangalore Airport at Bajpe is raising. The satisfaction score in the first round was 75 per cent, it shot up to 82 per cent in the second and 86 per cent in the third round.
The survey covered the aspects such as quality of food, car parking facility, shopping facility, behaviour of staff, general comfort, adequacy of seating arrangement, general aesthetics of airport, cleanliness, illumination, phone and banking facilities and so on. ‘Challenge’
M.R. Vasudeva, director of the airport, told The Hindu: “Now the challenge is to sustain the satisfaction-level of customers.” He said that civil works of the new terminal building of the airport at Kenjar were expected to be completed by December this year. However, operations at the new terminal building could start only after March, 2009 as shifting of facilities from the existing terminal building to the new building would take some time. Progress of work
Stating that the roof of the basement and first floor at the new terminal building had been completed, he said: “At present, the roofing of the second floor and the construction of a new power sub-station near the terminal building are under way.”
Work on the apron, the parking-stand for the aircraft, taxi-way connecting the apron and the runway had been completed. The AAI had sought the State Government to hand over the State highway, that connects the Mangalore-Bajpe Road with Kenjar where the new terminal building was coming up, to it.
“If the Government hands it over to AAI, we will asphalt it and improve it.
Once the new terminal building is connected with this road, the distance between Mangalore city and the airport will be reduced by 8 km,” he said

First-aid training for Mangalore airport staff

The Hindu Staff Correspondent
MANGALORE: The Airports Authority of India in collaboration with Kasturaba Medical College organised a first-aid training programme for newly recruited fire service personnel at its airport at Bajpe here on Wednesday.
The Dharmadhikari of Srikshethra Dharmasthala, Veerendra Heggade, who inaugurated the programme, said, “In this age, everyone has to be informed about first-aid treatment. Awareness about the methods of administering first-aid can save lives. This training will be helpful for passengers in an emergency situation.”
About the Mangalore airport, he said tremendous changes had taken place in the past four years and the services there had improved. A friendly approach on the part of airport personnel had made air travellers appreciate their efforts. He hoped Mangalore would be recognised at the international level soon. He also inaugurated a newly introduced X-ray baggage machine. First-aid trainer Ambareesh, who works as an anaesthesiologist at Kasturba Medical College Hospital here, said awareness about first-aid in India was on the wane and every person should know its basics. In times of danger, only proper training could help save lives.
Station Manager of Air India, Mangalore, Chellam Prasad was present.

AIE exploring possibilities of operating flights to Riyadh, Dammam

ARTISTIC: M.R. Vasudeva (right), director, Airport Authority of India, Chellam Prasad, (left), Station Manager of Air India, and Ratan Bali (second from left), deputy regional director, Air India, Mumbai, watch the Yakshagana being performed at the launching ceremony of a first flight to Sharjah at Bajpe aiport in Mangalore on Thursday.

Staff Correspondent
Yakshagana show marks the launch of Kozhikode-Mangalore-Sharjah service at Bajpe aiport
AIE will add six aircraft to its present fleet of 19 in a year, says official
The new flight service reduces journey time to the two cities by six hours

MANGALORE: The Air India Express (AIE), budget airliner of Air India, is exploring the possibilities of connecting Mangalore with Riyadh and Dammam in Saudi Arabia, Ratan Bali, Deputy Regional Director, Air India, Mumbai, said here on Thursday.
He was speaking to presspersons at Mangalore airport on the sidelines of a function to launch an Air India Express flight from Kozhikode to Sharajah and Kuwait, via Mangalore on Thursday.
He said, at present, the AIE had 19 aircraft and was planning to add six more to it by October, 2009.
“We will establish connectivity to more destinations when the aircraft arrive. Operating flights to Riyadh and Dammam is in our agenda,” he said. Mr. Bali said that AIE would operate a flight service between Kolkatta and Dhaka from July 20.
Asked if Air India had plans to have its maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) station at Mangalore, he said: “If the situation warrants, we will look into it.” The mood at the Bajpe airport on Thursday was upbeat as the number of West Asian cities having flight connection with Mangalore rose to seven. The Airports Authority of India (AAI) staff at the airport, members of airlines and passengers came together to celebrate the event.
Yakshagana artistes, Sanjaya Kumar and his Padubidri-based troupe, performed Yakshagana for a while at the departure hall. The beatings of “chende” , “mrudanga” and “charka tala” reverberated the airport. The artistes staged scenes from “Mahishasura Vadhe” and “Shakata Vadhe” episodes.
M.R. Vasudeva, director of the airport, Chellam Prasad, station manager, Air India- Mangalore and Mr. Bali cut a cake to mark the inauguration of the first flight to Sharjah and Kuwait.
According to Ms. Prasad, 87 passengers travelled in the inaugural flight on Thursday. Of them, 32 were bound for Sharjah and the rest for Kuwait. The flight arrived at Bajpe airport from Kozhikode at 6.05 p.m. and departed to Sharajah at 7.40 p.m. It would arrive here from Sharjah at 8.30 a.m. and depart to Sharjah at 9.20 a.m. on Friday. For the incoming flight, 137 seats had been booked from Kuwait and 18 from Sharajah, she said.
Lancy D’Souza of Kinnigoli, who works in Kuwait, said that a passenger flying from Mangalore to Kuwait would now save eight hours of journey. Earlier, he and his family members, had to go to Mumbai to take flights to Sharjah and Kuwait. He claimed that he was working in Kuwait for the past 30 years. He was spending Rs. 21,000 for one-way journey to Kuwait from Mangalore via Mumbai. Now he had paid Rs. 9,600 to reach Kuwait.
He said that during his 30 years of travel, he had never seen such grand celebrations at the airport.
Gracy Monterio of Jeppu said that she was travelling to Kuwait by Thursday’s flight for the first time to join her family. Jane Fernandes of Gangolli and Sushma Dinesh of Nitte were also travelling to Kuwait for the first time.
Rajesh Sequeira, co-ordinator, Karnataka NRI Forum, UAE, was present on the occasion.

Bajpe airport likely to start handling cargo operations soon

Raviprasad Kamila for The Hindu

Union Government has issued a notification in this regard Surathkal and Gurupura hoblis have been declared as ‘to be a warehousing station’Airport to have duty-free shops within a week

MANGALORE: The Union Government has issued a notification which will likely enable Bajpe (Mangalore) airport of the Airports Authority of India to handle cargo operations soon.
Official sources here have viewed this as a first step in realising the long-pending dream of the region.
The airport will have two duty-free shops within a week, as a result of the notification which is awaiting publication in the Gazette of India Extraordinary.
Air commuters will be able to buy imported goods such as liquor, tobacco, perfume, cosmetics, camera, watches, soft drinks, food products, pens and toys from the shops.
The airport authorities have been seeking permission to start cargo operations and establish duty-free shops for a long time.
Cargo operations are expected to improve the airport’s revenue, besides benefiting exporters and importers of the region and northern parts of Kerala. Notification
The notification, issued by Heera Radhakrishnan, Chief Commissioner of Customs, Karnataka, declares Surathkal and Gurupura hoblies, in which the airport is located, as “to be a warehousing station”, under Section 9 of the Customs Act, 1962, M.R. Vasudeva, Director of the airport, told The Hindu.
Sources said that based on the notification the Customs Department might issue licences for setting up private and public warehouses in the limits of these hoblis.
Section 9 of the Act says, “The Board may, by notification in the Official Gazette, declare places to be warehousing stations at which alone public warehouses may be appointed and private warehouses may be licensed.”
Meanwhile, Mangalore Customs Commissionerate issued licence to Flemingo Duty Free Shop Private Ltd. on July 11 to open duty-free shops at the airport.
The shops would be opened in the international arrival hall and in the international departure hall within a week, Mr. Vasudeva added.New flight service
Mangalore will be connected to two more West Asian cities from July 17. The Air India Express will operate a flight to Sharjah and Kuwait from Thursday.
Presently, there are flight services from the city to Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Doha, Bahrain and Muscat.

Kuwait : `Ready, Get Set' - AI Express Brief Media on Maiden Mangalore Flight

by Noel Cutinho, KuwaitDaijiworld Media Network - Kuwait
Kuwait, Jul 6: It is official now, Air India Express held a press conference on 5th July, at 7.50pm at Crown Plaza, Kuwait announcing the flights between Kuwait, Mangalore and Calicut. Krishan C Bhar, Country Manager (Kuwait/Cypus/Iran) of Air India Express hosted the Press Meeting along with his Air India staff Kuwait.
The Press Meeting was attended by numerous media personnel along with top officials of various associations of Karnataka and Kerala.
Krishan C Bhar was very happy to announce the first flight from Kuwait-Mangalore will start on 17th Jul, 2008 late night. Initially the flight will be twice a week on Thursday and Sunday. Later on, as per the demand the frequency will be increased.
During his speech he presented slide show regarding the new generation aircraft Boeing 737-800 as well other useful information. He also told that fares will be like budget airlines but with added services like on board food packets will be served to the passengers. Drinks (liquor) will be served at extra nominal cost. Baggage allowance from Kuwait-Mangalore will be 30 kilos and Mangalore-Kuwait is 20 kilos. Hand baggage allowed 5 kilos.
Due to Technical reason flight will have a stop over at Sharjah for 50 minutes for refuel purposes. The flying time will be Kuwait- Sharjah 1 hour 30 minutes, stop over at Sharjah 50 minutes and Sharjah to Mangalore will be 3 hours 40 minutes. The total time between Kuwait to Mangalore reduced to six hours whereas earlier it used to take 18 hours. Tickets can be booked online, will have complete transparency. Due to technical reason so far tickets cannot be booked but the problem will be resolved soon.
The Kuwait-Mangalore flight is beneficial to both states Coastal Karnataka and Northern Kerala. He had applauded the relentless efforts of Pascal Pinto, Archie Menezes and all the associations under the banner of UAKK.
Pascal Pinto, (PRO UAKK) addressed the meeting; the golden moment is arrived with the efforts of all. He remembered and thanked numerous associations, various officials of Air India, politicians and government authorities of Kuwait and India for the dream come true.
K Narsing Rao, First Secretary of Indian Embassy and Archie Menezes of UAAK main Co-coordinator of UAAK and top officials of various associations of Mangalore and Kerala addressed the gathering and expressed the happiness.
During the press meeting, Krishan C Bhar, Manager Air India Express well interacted with media as well other dignitaries. The Press meet was concluded with dinner.
During the Press Meet Air India Express officials distributed the information regarding Fare Rules and Policies as follows.
Rescheduling fee of Rs.250/- or its equivalent in local currency will be charged for any postponements / advancements. While rescheduling, if he applicable fare is more than the current basic fare, the difference amount will be charged to the passenger. However, if the applicable fare is less than the current basic fare, the different amount WILL NOT BE REFUNDED to the passenger.
CANCELLATION:
Cancellations over the internet are allowed for passengers who book through the internet or through other modes where the passenger has used credit card for purchase of the ticket. 10% of the basic fare + transaction fee is the cancellation is made 10 days or more prior to the scheduled departure of the flight.15% of the basic fare + transaction fee is the cancellation charge if the cancellation is made between 9 days and 24 hours prior to the scheduled departure of the flight. No refund if the cancellation is made less than 24 hours prior to the scheduled departure of the flight. Only Taxes will be refunded back

Riyadh - Mangalore Flight : KWAR Gets into Action

News From P A Hameed Padubidri For Daijiworld Media Network—Riyadh (CN)

Riyadh, Jul 1: Representatives from the Karavali welfare association Riyadh (KWAR), met the manager of Air India, Ratan Ghosh on Monday, June 30, and handed over a memorandum regarding the direct flight from Riyadh to Mangalore.
This was one of the major milestones embodied by the KWAR in its programme. The delegation consisted of Vijai Rai, president of KWAR, Khasim Ahmed, vice-president of KWAR, Royston Prabhu, general secretary, and Rajesh Kumar, co-ordinator.

The team members expressed their satisfaction with the briefing in which the existence and diverse objectives of the association were communicated to Ghosh. The delegation also highlighted the importance and contribution of Mangalore (undivided district of DK) as a focal point that had the lion’s share in education, economy, trade, business, foreign exchange, and volume of NRIs in the Kingdom.
Ghosh was also invited to the inaugural ceremony of KWAR, to be held on Friday, July 4, 2008 at Al Khayyam Hotel at Hara, in Riyadh. Sources informed that Ghosh is well aware of the region and the airline has done its own survey and homework on the possibility of introducing direct flights on this route.
The management of Air India will look into the technical aspects of operating such flights, their frequency, volume of business expected, subject to the approval of the PCA and availability of aircraft.
This is a long-awaited dream of scores of NRIs based in various parts of the Kingdom like Riyadh, Qassim, Buraida, Hail, Dawadmi, Wadi Dawasir, Al Kharj, Maima, and others. A number of problems in the existing travel system via Mumbai and other terminal points, being faced by Mangaloreans as well as others would be considerably reduced if the direct flight facility is introduced. This will require the co-operation of both the concerned state and central governments in India. So far, there was no unified front to take up the cause in the Kingdom. Now KWAR has been pursuing the issue on a war footing and hopes to have the task accomplished before or by the end of 2008. Since its inception, KWAR has held regular meetings of its executive committee to work towards making this dream a reality.

Kuwait - Mangalore Direct Flight Tickets Now Online

Daijiworld Media Network Mangalore
Mangalore, Jul 1: Daijiworld.com had earlier announced the possibility of flying direct between Kuwait-Mangalore from July 17, 2008. This long-pending dream is now getting realized. Air India Express has now officially conveyed the message to the website that flight will take-off from Mangalore to Kuwait on July 17 at 19.35hrs. It will arrive at Kuwait at 23.05 pm via Muscat.
Next day, flight will take off from Kuwait at 00.05 and arrive at Mangalore airport Via Muscat at 8.30 am
The inaugural fare will be Rs 8, 415 including tax one way from Mangalore to Kuwait and KD 53.70 from Kuwait to Mangalore one way.
Pascal Pinto, main coordinator of Kuwait Konkans informed daijiworld Mangalore office that Mangaloreans are planning big celebration prior to the take-off on Thursday July 17 midnight. He said that he is in touch with the Air India office Kuwait for further details.
Please access www.airindiaexpress.in for booking now!
More details will be updated soon on daijiworld.com