Yeddyurappa in City: Cong Activists Besiege CM's Vehicle, Leaders Arrested

Pics: Savitha B R
Daijiworld Media Network - Mangalore (PS)

Rs 23 crore for Mangalore airport

He then addressed a press meet wherein he announced that the government has released Rs 15 crore for the extension of the airport runway, apart from Rs 8 crore for the overall development of the airport. He also said that the district jail will be soon shifted to the city outskirts.

On illegal mining in the state, he said that because of his decisions, more than 90 percent of illegal mining has stopped.

Lambasting the opposition, he said that the government is in possession of documents pertaining to Deve Gowda's corruption and will soon bring it before the public. He pointed out that by refusing to go with the government's decision to convene assembly session, the opposition parties have proved that they are anti-democratic.

He also took a dig at governor Bhardwaj, asking how could a governor who is an expert at Constitution and law behave in an anti-Constitutional manner. The governor has committed a serious offence and has brought bad name to his post, he said. He expressed confidence that as his party has absolute majority, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and home minister Chidambaram would not take any unfavourable decision and would not dissolve the government. He also mocked Janardhan Poojary saying, "He had vowed to quit if BJP were to win all three seats, where is he now and why is not commenting?"He advised Congress to introspect as well as restrospect over all that has happened in the recent times. People are fed up and will not tolerate such opposition parties anymore, he said.

Best Fire Station Trophy for Mangalore Airport

Best Fire Station Trophy for Mangalore Airport Daijiworld Media Network – Mangalore (SP) Mangalore, Apr 19: The local airport has won the ‘Best Fire Station Trophy’ in southern zone. This award is being given, based on the drill, preparedness of the personnel and their management, machinery and equipments, level of discipline, safety, standard of safety vehicles, and basic amenities being provided to the fire station personnel, said director of the airport, M R Vasudeva.In the meanwhile, discordant notes have been heard about the award announced for these fire personnel, who toiled hard for several hours during the tragic air crash that occurred at the airport here on May 22, 2010. These fire personnel, it is learnt, have received commendation letters, which can be shown at the treasury for drawing Rs 100 (Rupees One Hundred only) sanctioned to them as reward for their sincere work during the said air crash. It is gathered that the policemen who discharged their duties during the said crisis have been sanctioned between Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,000.

Come December, Mangalore Airport to Go International, Assures Moily

Pics: Savitha B RDaijiworld Media Network - Mangalore (PS/SB)
Mangalore, Mar 13: Union law minister M Veerappa Moily on Sunday March 13 said that the long pending demand of internationalizing of Mangalore Airport is a genuine one and assured to make efforts for the realization of the same in coincidence with the valedictory celebration of Diamond Jubilee of Mangalore Airport on December 21.
Thus minister made apt use of the podium to immediately act upon the memorandum submitted by the Kanara Chamber of Commerce and Industry president G G Mohandas Prabhu on behalf of the citizens. Stressing on the facilities and prior preparations to consider any airport as an international one, he said that with the support of state government he will putforth the demands mentioned in the memorandum in front of the cabinet. Calling Mangalore Airport, a precious one, which has 50% of international passenger traffic, he said the participation from all segments including citizen will realize the long-standing dream.
Minister was speaking after inaugurating the diamond jubilee celebrations of Mangalore Airport at the St Aloysius College High School auditorium on behalf of Vayalar Ravi, union minister for overseas Indian affairs & civil aviation, who could not make it to the function due to emergency meeting.
The memorandum included the demands stressing declaration of Mangalore airport as an international airport, increasing the length of the runway, provision of a parallel taxiway to facilitate taxis/free flow of passengers (taxiway Apron), for installation of precision approach lighting system and naming of the airport as “U S Mallya International Airport, Mangalore” among others.
M R Vasudeva, director of Mangalore Airport said that earlier Mangalore Airport which had Rs 4 crore revenue and rupees six and half crore expenditure, now earns revenue up to Rs 36 crore with limiting expenditure to Rs 30 crore. He wholeheartedly congratulated the people for arranging the diamond jubilee celebration.
Deputy speaker N Yogish Bhat said the yearlong celebration should realize objectives and not be reduced mere symbolic one. The proposal for the land acquisition, to facilitate extension of runway, has been budgeted at Rs 15 crore and will be realized on public-private partnership basis within December, he said.
Pascal Pinto, NRI Forum, Kuwait also handed over the memorandum to Veerappa Moily on the occasion.
MP Nalin Kumar Kateel anmd MLA Ramanath Rai among others were present.

Runway Extension Mandatory to vie with Neighbour Airports: M R Vasudeva

Savitha B RDaijiworld Media Network – Mangalore (PS) Mangalore,

Feb 16: M R Vasudeva, director of Mangalore Airport at a ‘Meet the Press’ programme held at Press Club here on Tuesday February 15 briefed about the initial days of Mangalore Airport, and said that airport started its operation with one wireless system, one control tower, and a communication navigation system for guidance now is a full-fledged modernized airport. Pointing out the merits of Mangalore airport, Vasudeva said that the airport is one of the 35 non metro airports in India, and handled 8.5 lac passengers this year.
Further speaking he said that airport is the asset of people of Mangalore, surely the airport will see developmental projects in near future though runway extension work which was commenced in 2006 has seen a quite long delay. He said that the airport authority alone can not celebrate its birthday of its own, but incase KCCI and other representative bodies come forward it can be celebrated in a grand manner. It can be a local level celebration and not as national attention grabbing since there are many such airports celebrating their anniversaries across the country, he reasoned. Stating about the future plans, Vasudeva said that Mangalore airport’s development is interlinked with other infrastructure development such as industries, buildings, high class hotels, good road among others. Rs. 207 crore has been invested for the development of the airport, so far and the government has sanctioned Rs. 22 crore for land acquisition purposes. Runway extension is mandatory to vie with neighbor airports, he stressed. Guruvappa T Balepuni, the general secretary of Dakshina Kannada District Working Journalists’ Association was present on the occasion.

It is Celebration Time for Mangalore Airport

It is Celebration Time for Mangalore Airport
by Florine Roche
Feb 15, 2011
60 years ago on December 21, 1951 with the arrival of Pt Jawaharlal Nehru, India’s first Prime Minister, in Mangalore, the Bajpe Aerodrome, which has now graduated to become Mangalore International Airport, was commissioned. The airport has come a long way since then and is now celebrating its diamond jubilee this year, which is no doubt a moment of great pride for all Mangaloreans. The airport has been instrumental in facilitating the economic development of this port city. The airport which has been operating international flights from 2006 onwards has been awaiting the tag of international airport status, which may take some more time to get materialized.
The length of the second runway at Mangalore airport is 8038 feet whereas the availability of a 9000 feet runway is a pre-requisite to upgrade the status of the airport. After inaugurating the new terminal Praful Patel had announced extension of the runway and after the gruesome air crash tragedy of May last year, it was reassured that the runway would be extended and it would also take into account the required spillover area in case of emergency. The paper work in this regard is under process. Another distinctive feature of Mangalore airport is that it is one among the three airports in the country to have table top runways, the other two being Kozhikode and Lengpui in Aizwal, Mizoram. The table top feature of the airport had come in for severe criticism after the air crash tragedy of last year.
Major Milestone
60 years is indubitably a major landmark in the chequered history of this airport and Kanara Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), which played a prominent role in the establishment of the airport has chalked out a series of year long programmes to mark the diamond jubilee celebrations, aimed at the development of the district. The inaugural function of the celebration was supposed to be held on February 4, 2011, to be attended by then Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel. However, with Vyalar Ravi becoming the new Civil Aviation Minister, it proved to be a non-starter. KCCI has now invited the new minister Vyalar Ravi and if everything goes well the celebrations will take off on February 27, 2011. Considering the Union budget on 28th February, one has to keep the fingers crossed on whether the minister would make it on that day. But KCCI is bent upon inviting the minister to kick start the celebrations on any convenient day.
KCCI expects the active involvement of local industrialists, traders and leaders in the hospitality and tourism sectors to give a impetus to developmental activities here. The KCCI once again coming forward to play a stellar role certainly augurs well for Mangalore International Airport, which faced lot of flak and criticism following the gruesome air crash in May last year.
Airport Director M R Vasudeva, the man who strived to bring Mangalore Airport to the present status, speaking to daijiworld said “though Airport Authority of India is not chalking out any programmes to mark the diamond jubilee celebrations, we would certainly join hands with KCCI and the citizens of Mangalore by participating in the various programmes they have planned to mark this event”.
60 years back war hero and retired Wing Commander Vonthibettu Prabhakar Hegde flew Jawaharlal Nehru on his first ever flight to Mangalore Airport, then known as Bajpe Aerodrome. There was no runway when the first aircraft landed at Bajpe as digging and leveling of the hell to build the runway was in progress. Nevertheless, Nehru’s landing on DC-3(Dakota) at Bajpe itself is considered as the commissioning of the airport. Dakota aircrafts are small with a seating capacity of below 40 and till 1983 only smaller aircrafts like Dacota could be landed in Mangalore.
In 1983 a runway (5330 feet) was set up and this enabled the landing of Boeing 737-sized aircrafts, having a seating capacity of about 110 people. The status quo continued till 2006 when the new runway of 8,039 feet was opened and the Bajpe airport was declared as Customs Airport, which paved the way for operating flights to international destinations from the airport. Mangalore became the first airport in Karnataka to have a concrete runway and also to have two runways. On 3 October 2006, Air India Express flight 802 from Dubai became the first international flight to land at Mangalore Airport.
Several Hurdles
Though AAI had asked the Karnataka Government in 1989 itself to acquire necessary land for the expansion of the airport, it was only in 2003 the land was acquired and given to Mangalore Airport authorities. A compensation of about 22 crores was spent for land acquisition and rehabilitation of the displaced persons. Only after the land acquisition was done the work of the new runway and the NITB took off at a lightening speed.
The concrete runway was completed within a record time of two years and once the runway became operational top priority was given for establishing the new integrated terminal building, at Kenjar, where the NITB is now located. As a result the distance to the airport from Mangalore is reduced by about 6 kms making it convenient for people to travel to the airport. With Mangalore Airport opening its doors to international flights, the New Integrated Terminal Building (NITB) became a necessity and work was started on accomplishing it on a war footing. The NITB built over 70 acres of land has a capacity to accommodate four A310 class and a A321 class aircraft at a time with provisions to three more aircrafts to be added if required.
After facing several hiccups, the NITB constructed at a cost of Rs.148 crores, was inaugurated on May 15, 2010 and was thrown open for air traffic in July 2010. NITB is built on modular concept where future expansion, if needed is possible. There are about 35 airports in India built on this concept and Mangalore is one among them. It became fully operational from August 2010 and the services were completely shifted from the old airport at Bajpe to the NITB. The new terminal provides a comfortable and convenient ambience to both the passengers and visitors and more spare for airlines, their staff and better facilities and space for passengers at the lounge and the lobby. With the NITB becoming a reality a major hurdle was overcome in upgrading the status of the airport. The opening of the new terminal building was a dream come true for the people of coastal districts and the neighboring state Kerala.
Increased Passenger Traffic
M R Vasudeva says at present Mangalore International Airport is handling 32 flight movements a day and 42 international flights per week. The passenger traffic has rose from 2.77 lakh in 2005 to 8.5 lakhs for the year 2010 and going by the current trend it is going to be even more in the coming years. About 1000 passengers can be handled at a time at the NITB. The initial shortcomings were overcome and it is now equipped with two aerobridges and has provision for adding one more in the future. It is designed to separately handle domestic and international passengers.
But the airport has to quicken the second and third phase of development and also expansion of the runway that include installation of an arrester system and creating the mandatory buffer zone at the end of the runway is undertaken in a phased manner. Extending the runway by 1000 feet is yet to start as it involves acquiring another 50 acres of land and an expenditure of about Rs. 200 crores, says Vasudeva. “Extending the runway necessitates filling up the valley which is 45 meter deep. Filling 1 sq meter of the gorge requires Rs. 200 which is quite a lot of money. If the enlightened citizens of the costal districts come up with necessary finance the work can be undertaken immediately. We have instances of local citizens shouldering such responsibility in Cochin, Calicut and Cannannore airports. KCCI, which is the voice of the people has come forward with some proposal and we are ready to extend all possible help”, Vasudeva states.
Vasudeva says that at the moment Mangalore does not have that kind of air traffic to have Jumbo aircrafts, which might become necessary when SEZ becomes a reality and the city braces up for new economic growth and industrial development.
It is believed that the old terminal at Bajpe will be handed over to the Coast Guard for handling cargo. The Kanara Chamber has now taken up the mantle of giving a new impetus to the growth of the coastal districts and in its scheme of things according international status to Mangalore airport is on top of the agenda. Chamber President G G Mohandas Prabhu had said that there is scope for handling cargoes such as vegetables, fruits, processed food and other items from Mangalore and the space at the old airport is convenient for this purpose. KCCI is directing its efforts in maximizing the connectivity advantage enjoyed by Mangalore to boost developmental activity in this area.
KCCI’s Four Demands
KCCI President Mohandas Prabhu says that the chamber will place four demands when the Civil Aviation Minister is going to come for the inauguration of the diamond jubilee celebrations. “Our demands include extension of the runway by 3000 feet, the tag of international status to Mangalore airport, the airport to be named after Ullal Srinivasa Mallya and also the setting up of the Air Cargo Complex. We have also planned many event spread over the year to mark the diamond jubilee celebrations of the airport. We have chalked out a series of programmes aimed at improving the infrastructure facilities keeping in mind the all round development of the coastal districts”, Mohandas Prabhu asserts.
Mangalore international airport is certainly raring to go if the Civil Aviation Ministry accedes to these demands of KCCI, which are . But considering the financial stakes involved and with AAI having precedence of local partnership in the development of the airports, it should not be a difficult task to comply with these demands.
In the meantime the work of the second and 3rd phase at the NITB needs to be undertaken with full gusto. While the airport in toto looks swanky and in tune with the international status, some attention needs to be given for keeping the surrounding area clean. The area behind the airport canteen is littered with all sorts of plastic and other waste which presents a very bad picture of the place. Let us hop the concerned authorities take due note of this.
With the bad memories of the worst plan tragedy behind it, the airport needs to give priority for safety measures. It is believed that Mangalore would come under the centralized radar operation system would be effected within 8 to 10 months. Even Bangalore international airport does not have Area Control services, which Mangalore has because of Mangalore’s geographical strategic location. Among the 11 centres in India Mangalore airport is one which provides area control service to the aircrafts overflying Mangalore Airport (DVOR).
The Mangalore Airport has provided enough stimulus to the growth of this region. Let us hope the Airport in its new avatar is going to strive for greater role in the economic growth of this area in the future too.

Jet Airways to Connect Sharjah - Mangalore Soon

Mumbai, Jan 30 (PTI) : Bolstered by high passenger volumes on its Gulf network, private carrier Jet Airways is looking at enhancing connectivity to the lucrative region from the coming summer, an airline source said.
"Encouraged by the increasing traffic on the Gulf routes, we are mulling to launch some new sectors in ournetwork," a Jet Airways source told PTI on condition ofanonymity.
The airline plans to add one flight on Mumbai-Dubai route, he said, adding services to Sharjah from Mangalore and Thiruvananthapuram are also being worked out. "We plan to introduce these services from the coming summer season."
Jet Airways currently operates two daily flights from Mumbai and one each from Delhi and Hyderabad to Dubai.
The proposed flights are expected be serviced by theBoeing 737-800 aircraft, he added.
Jet Airways, which currently has a fleet of 93aircraft, plans to add 49 more planes in the next five yearsto expand its domestic and international network.
Coming out of the global meltdown, when passenger airtraffic fell significantly and airlines reduced capacity, the domestic air traffic clocked a 16 per cent growth in 2010.
According to industry estimates, the passenger trafficis expected to touch 60-million mark this year as against 45million in 2009.
Recently, Jet Airways Chairman Naresh Goyal said he was expecting a 15 per cent rise in the domestic and another 15-20 per cent in the international passenger traffic.

Diamond Jubilee Celebrations of Mangalore Airport from Feb 4

Media Release
Mangalore, Jan 18: It's celebration time for Mangalore Airport as it enters the 60th year of its existence, and to mark the milestone, Kanara Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) has planned a number of events and schemes for the airport's development.
The Airport entered into its diamond jubilee year on December 21, 2010. KCCI, which had a significant role to play in the establishment of the Airport, will host several programmes throughout the year for its development and to benefit the stakeholders of the Airport.
File Pic
The inaugural ceremony of the diamond jubilee celebration will be held on Friday, February 4 from 4 pm to 6 pm at T V Raman Pai Convention Centre here. Praful Patel, union minister for civil aviation, Dr M Veerappa Moily, union minister for law and justice and B S Yeddyurappa, chief minister and MPs, MLCs and MLAs of this region have been invited to grace the occasion.
The captains of trade and industry, particularly from the tourism and hospitality segments will also attend the programme. Those who wish to participate may contact KCCI office for further details.

Efforts on for Establishing Air Cargo Complex in Mangalore

Efforts on for Establishing Air Cargo Complex in Mangalore
Daijiworld Media Network
Mangalore, Dec 21: That Mangalore is easily accessible to the rest of the country by land, rail, air and sea is a well known. This connectivity advantage has played a pivotal role in Mangalore emerging as an important economic and commercial place in Karnataka after Bangalore. Ever since international flights have started operating from Mangalore International Airport, the city is now best reached by air. With such easy accessibility to this port city, Kanara Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) of Mangalore, which has played a key role in the development activities of the district for over 70 years, has been directing its efforts to make use of the connectivity advantage enjoyed by Mangalore city, to provide fillip to the growth and development of this city.
KCCI has always taken up the mantle of giving a spur to the development process in the district since its inception. “KCCI is a proactive organization where we envision the development of the district. In this pursuit we are looking at avenues available for creating infrastructure so that real development takes place”, Mohandas Prabhu, President of KCCI points out.
GG Mohandas Prabhu
Continuing in the foot steps of the visionaries who envisioned an active role for it, KCCI under the dynamic leadership of its President G G Mohandas Prabhu has shouldered the responsibility of setting up an air cargo complex in Mangalore. While explaining the necessity of an air cargo complex Mohandas seems to be determined to see his dream project fructifies by the end of March 31, 2011. He says “the international flights have started operations from Mangalore long back and we are confident the airport will soon be elevated to the status of an international airport.
As a logical step towards the direction of development of the city, we need to set up an Air Cargo Complex to facilitate imports and exports especially through the gulf region “. KCCI is now looking forward to feel the pulse of the people of the costal district who have settled in the gulf region. Goods like Mangalore jasmine, seasonal fruits like mangoes, jackfruits, fish etc., can be exported to different countries using Dubai airport. Similarly, there are many medical and engineering colleges in and around Mangalore who might be interested in importing medical equipments and other machinery and this air cargo complex would be of immense help to import such equipments through Dubai airport. Mohandas Prabhu adds “we do not know who is interested in exporting goods from Mangalore to different countries of the gulf. It is not practicable for me to go to each country and find out who is interested. But we want to reach out to the people and make them aware about the availability of such a facility in Mangalore. I want the response of our people from the gulf region so that we can substantiate whatever study we have undertaken in this direction and present the hard facts to the government of India saying we have tremendous response from the people . That would make our case much stronger” . Based on the positive response of the people KCCI wants to pursue the matter with requisite proof which would play an essential role in speeding up the process of setting up air cargo complex. Establishing an air cargo complex would enable people to send commodities from Mangalore to the gulf region and vice versa. KCCI has given representation to the authorities and agencies involved, such as Airport Authority of India, Customs Department, the Importers and Exporters and other agencies, to make this dream become a reality. KCCI has held 3 rounds of discussions with Air India Express Manager, Mangalore, regarding this project and the airlines has assured their support and cooperation.
The air cargo complex would also provide an opportunity to send unaccompanied baggage for travelers who have extra luggage with them as this luggage also had to get clearance from the customs department. If the project becomes a reality it would further fuel growth and development in this region.
Kanara Chamber of Commerce and Industry has always been in the forefront in putting forward programmes and implementing them for creating better infrastructure keeping in mind the growth and development of the district. The ideas for setting up New Mangalore Port, the international airport (with good support from people like Rajesh Sequeira from the gulf) originated in the premises of this organization.
KCCI has other ambitious plans for the district including setting up of an international standard cricket stadium with a seating capacity of 50,000 people and a liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal which can be converted into clean electricity. It is also in touch with the Ministry of Agriculture to set up a fishing harbor in Kulai, Hosabettu. Plans are also on the anvil to develop the tourism sector in the district, considering the potential for developing tourism in the district.
At present, the priority is for setting up the Air Cargo Complex and Mohandas Prabhu feels he will get enough inputs from Mangaloreans in the gulf region. Those who wish to give feed back or want to get more information can contact the chamber office on email or telephone, fax etc,.
Email : kanarachamber.2008@rediffmail.com or kanarachamber@gmail.com

Tel: 0824 – 2420128, 4260128

2493859 (after office hours)

Fax: 2420669

M'lore Airport Structurally Stable, No Threat from Quarries: B M Ravindra

Daijiworld Media Network - Mangalore (SR/CN)
Mangalore, Oct 1: The recent reports on a national news channel regarding the geological instability of Mangalore Airport were brushed aside by B M Ravindra, deputy director, department of Mines & Geology, at a press meet here on Friday October 1.
Addressing the media at the New Terminal of the Bajpe Airport, Ravindra said that Bajpe region is 'structurally stable with a lateritic cover at the top underlain by very hard and fresh unweathered granitic rocks,' capable of withstanding a moderate earthquake of scale 2.
He added that there are a few lateritic quarries in the Adyapadi village, located around 300-400 mts towards the southeast from the airport. The laterite is a surfacial material deposited over a basement of hard and resistant granite rocks in Bajpe airport area. The hard laterite stones are extracted using cutting machines and blades, and not explosives, chemicals or blasts, he assured.
Ravindra also clarified that extraction of laterites was not the reason for landslides. Referring to the studies made in areas like Kethikal, Kadawada and Eliyarapadavu, he said that landslides in the coastal part of the state occur under special geo-environmental conditions which are not found in Bajpe - Adyapadi region.
There are two old granite quarries located at a distance of one km from the airport in the northwest sector, under the Karambar village limits. However, these quarries have posed no threat to the environment in the last thirty years of their operations, nor do they cause any danger to the structural stability of Bajpe airport, he said, rubbishing the media reports on national television.
Among those present were director of Mangalore Airport M R Vasudeva.

User Development Fee at Mangalore Airport from Sep 1

(The Hindu)
Passengers boarding flights at the Mangalore airport will have to pay user development fee from next month. It is not applicable to incoming passengers.
Each passenger boarding domestic flights will have to pay Rs. 150 and those boarding flights to other countries will have to pay Rs. 825. However, there are some exemptions.
The user development fee will be in force for 10 years with effect from September 1, Director of the airport M.R. Vasudeva told The Hindu. The Union Ministry of Civil Aviation had approved the levying of the fee on May 25, he said.
Various airlines will collect the fee from the passengers and remit it to the Airports Authority of India (AAI). The fee includes service tax and collection charges of airlines.
Vasudeva said that infants (for infant tickets issued by airlines) would be exempt from paying the fee. Diplomatic passport holders, crew of airlines on duty and transit passengers need not pay the fee.
The AAI needs Rs. 75 lakh a month for maintaining the new air-conditioned terminal building, he said

Business as usual at Mangalore airport

A.J. Vinayak for Business line(The Hindu publication)
Mangalore airport was in news for all wrong reasons two months ago. The air crash that killed 158 people led to apprehensions that passenger movement through the airport would be affected. But the users of Mangalore airport have laid such apprehensions to rest. Passenger movement has shown a growth even after the air crash.
The airport, which handled 1.34 lakh passengers during May-June 2009, handled 1.41 lakh passengers during May-June 2010. The airport achieved this growth in spite of diversion of planes due to inclement weather conditions in the region during the period.
Mr Rajesh Sequeira, coordinator of Karnataka NRI Forum at the UAE, told Business Line that the confidence level of travellers flying from West Asia to Mangalore was unaffected by the tragedy. “The confidence level is intact because of the facilities provided by the Airports Authority of India at the airport and the advantage of saving time and money by directly flying to Mangalore. The unfortunate incident of the air crash is one part of life. But life has to go on, so the air crash will not make a difference in to our day-to-day life,” he said.
Air India Express, the lone international carrier from Mangalore to West Asia, has not seen any drop in load factor after the air-crash. Sources in AI Express said the demand for tickets from West Asia to Mangalore had not come down, and passengers still prefer Mangalore airport.
Rapid development
Mr G. Giridhar Prabhu, an entrepreneur from Mangalore, said that air connectivity was a crucial aspect in a business-driven and socially-oriented place like Mangalore, and that the traffic was bound to increase as the region was developing at a rapid pace.
The airport, which witnessed a total passenger handling of little over a million passengers between 2000 and 2005, saw a three-fold increase between 2006 and first half of 2010. This growth was led by international passengers. International operations from Mangalore airport began on October 3, 2006. From October 2006 to June 2010, the airport handled a total of 29.81 lakh passengers. Of these, the number of international passengers stood at 6.82 lakh, or nearly 23 per cent of the total passengers handled during the period.
Direct connectivity between Mangalore and West Asia has helped NRIs increase their frequency of travel. Mr Sequeira said that people would travel only once in a year or so when there was no direct flight. “But after the direct flight connection to Mangalore, the frequency of such people visiting Mangalore has increased,” he said.
The number of international flights has increased from three a week in October 2006 to 26 a week now. Mangalore airport is now connected with destinations such as Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Muscat, Bahrain, Doha, Sharjah and Kuwait.
Along with passengers from Karnataka, travellers from northern Kerala account for a significant share in the growth of passengers over the years. Recently, the Kerala Association of Travel Agents submitted a memorandum to the Mangalore Airport Director, to start flights to destinations in Saudi Arabia such as Dammam, Riyadh and Jeddah.
The memorandum had stated that a large number of Saudi-bound passengers were from north Kerala and coastal Karnataka.
Mr Prabhu said that the traffic would increase if connectivity were to be provided to other regions. “Once the new terminal opens and airlines do their diligence, Mangalore will have greater potential for convergence from, say, Africa, and stopovers from West Asia to Sri Lanka, or stopovers from the near East like Singapore into Africa,” he said.
The growth in passenger traffic was also aided by the commissioning of the second runway at the airport in 2006. The 2450-metre-long second runway helped wide-bodied aircraft to land at the airport, which was not possible earlier. The old runway's length is 1,625 metres.
AIRCRAFT MOVEMENTS
Infrastructure addition was visible with the airport witnessing a higher number of aircraft movements. Mangalore, which witnessed 5,546 aircraft movements in 2006, saw it jumping to 8,334 movements in 2007. The aircraft movements reached 11,938 and 11,148 during 2008 and 2009, respectively. There have been encouraging signals on this count in the first half of 2010, as the airport witnessed 5,440 aircraft movements till the end of June.
Air traffic at Mangalore airport is set to go up in the years to come, as the Civil Aviation Ministry is planning to extend the second runway at the airport by another 305 metres (1,000 ft). It is essential for the airport to extend the runway length by another 1000 ft to get international status. A 9,000-ft runway is one of the requirements for any airport to get international status.
Mr Sequeira said that international status will help the airport attract more airlines to international destinations. Mangalore got the status of a Customs Aerodrome in May 2006. Mr Praful Patel, who was in Mangalore to inaugurate the new terminal building of Mangalore airport on May 15, had announced that the runway would be extended by 1,000 ft. He reiterated this even after the air-crash on May 22.
With air passenger confidence intact, many facilities in place and some more in the planning stage, Mangalore airport is all set to witness further growth in the years to come
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2010/08/09/stories/2010080950180500.htm

Mangalore : New Terminal - First Step Towards Next Level

Special CorrespondentDaijiworld Media Network - Mangalore
Mangalore, Jul 2: With the new integrated terminal building of Mangalore Airport (NITB) becoming operational from today the long awaited dream of Mangaloreans has finally been fulfilled, albeit after much delay. Though the NITB was inaugurated on May 15, 2010 the terminal was not open for operations until today. With the shifting of the services completely to the new terminal the distance to the airport has been reduced by nearly 6 kms, which has come as a big relief to travelers from the coastal districts of Karnataka and the border districts of neighboring Kerala.
Apart from reducing the distance to the airport the NITB has become more of a necessity after the airport opened its door to international flights to operate from here four years back. Several airlines began to operate international flights from Mangalore airport to the Middle-East facilitating easy transit for a large number of people working in the Gulf countries. Therefore raising the airport to international standards was the need of the hour and the opening of the new terminal building is certainly a dream come true for the people of the coastal districts. Air India Express IX 820 from Bahrain/Kuwait was the first flight to land at the new terminal at 7.10 am today. The same Air India Express IX 820 was the first flight to depart to Dubai from the new terminal.
M R Vasudeva and Air India Station Manager Chellam Prasad along with other Airport officials and Air India Staff were present at the new terminal to greet the passengers arrived by the first flight which landed at the new terminal building.
Speaking to daijiworld.com Airport Director M R Vasudeva said “the new terminal is a gift to the people of Mangalore who have been waiting for this momentous day for a long time. The terminal is now operational and will be on trial basis for another 15 to 20 days and all facilities are available to passengers and airlines except the aerobridges which will be installed subsequently. NITB provides a comfortable and convenient ambience to both the passengers and the visitors. We have been able to provide more space to the airlines, for restaurants and shops, better facilities and space for passengers at the lounge and lobby”.
Air India Station Manager Chellam Prasad termed it “as a proud moment for Air India to be the first airline to land its aircraft at the new terminal. All credit should go to the Airport Director for making this dream a reality”.
The shortcomings
The initial euphoria not withstanding, not everything at the airport is near perfect at least from the point of view of the private airlines who feel that the facilities are inadequate. One of the private airlines official on condition of anonymity stated that lot work is still pending and there seems to be a few technical flaws which should have been taken care of at the time of the construction of the new terminal. The main grouse of the airlines is that there is no proper storage facility for the airlines to store necessary basic engineering equipments at the new terminal which might be required by the aircrafts such as tyres and other spare parts. These parts or equipments are very expensive and need to be stored with foolproof safety. But such a basic facility usually provided at international airports is not provided at the new terminal. The private airlines feel that they should have been taken into confidence during the process of construction of the new terminal.
The other flaw is that there is no provision for the airlines to go to the basement from inside the terminal in case the airline staff wants to approach the passengers or get their luggage. Suppose a passenger is taken ill after going in and does not want to travel the airline staff has to come out of the terminal into the public area and go a round about way to reach them which is a major drawback.

Proper surveillance system is the other major area the concerns the airlines, especially the bird hit issue though it is not directly connected with the new terminal. In the recent past there have been 3 cases of bird hit at the Bajpe airport including last weeks incident of a peacock that had hit the Jet Airways while landing, causing damage to the aircraft and delay in its departure. It is the emergency situations arising out of situations like this necessitate the need of proper storage facility for engineering equipments. These airlines have decided to take up the issue to the notice of the airport authorities as they feel that it is the duty of the Airport Authority to provide a clear ground for landing and departure. The airlines feel that Airport Authority should make provisions to deploy someone at least at the time of departure or make some arrangements to scare the birds and reduce such incidents.
There are also complaints of lack of proper communication facilities at the basement of the new terminal which comes in the way of effective communication. Security at the new terminal building is another major issue. With more entrance and exit areas and more space to be guarded the job of the Central Industrial Security Force has become all the more cumbersome and challenging. It certainly calls for increased manpower to man the new terminal building.
Once these lacunae are taken care of may be the new terminal building will be safe, comfortable and convenient for the passengers, airlines and the visitors. The NITB can handle about 500 passengers at a time both arrival and departure. Provisions are made for handling domestic and international passengers separately. Facilities are also provided for parking more than 300 cars at the terminal. The new terminal is capable of handling about 500 visitors at time.
There were apprehensions about the approach road to the new terminal building which are now allayed with separate provisions for entry and exit. Vehicles entering the NITB have to approach from the Shree Devi Institute of Technology road and the exit is from the road adjacent to the Deccan Park. The state government has promised to provide Rs. 9 crores to develop the new exit road. Though the dispute regarding the Deccan Park area is yet to be resolved Vasudeva feels that it will be solved and will not come in the way of developing the road.

New Integrated Terminal Bldg of M’lore Airport at Kenjar in Action

Pics: Dayanand KukkajeDaijiworld Media Network – Mangalore (SB)

Mangalore, Aug 2: The new integrated terminal building of City airport at Kenjar here began its full-fledged operations at 6.00 am on Monday August 2. The Air India Express flight IX 820 arriving from Dubai landed at 7.20 am albeit delayed by 1 hour 10 minutes becoming the first flight to touch down at the new terminal.
Airport director M R Vasudeva and Air India station manager Chellam Prasad accorded a warm welcome to all the passengers aboard the flight. Airport officials and Air India staff too were present on the occasion.
The Airports Authority of India thus finally has shifted the entire operations to the new integrated terminal building even though on a trial basis. Both operations of both domestic and international flights will be handled from the terminal henceforth.
There would be clearer demarcation of arrival, departure and visitors lounge with air travelers now getting access to the luxury of a good ambience and better facilities. However, the passengers would have to wait for another two to three weeks before the newly installed aerobridges are put to use at the terminal.
The new terminal is closer to the city by nearly six kilometers. Vehicles approaching new integrated terminal building will have to take the road laid adjacent to Shree Devi Institute of Technology, and exit from the road adjacent to Dakkan Park.

Mangalore: Hoax Call about Fire on AI Flight Causes Panic

Daijiworld Media Network - Mangalore (AF)
Mangalore, Jul 24: Close to midnight on Saturday July 24, television channels like CNN-IBN and Times Now broke the news that Air India flight IX 811 at Mangalore airport had caught fire just before take off.
Immediately Daijiworld office was flooded with calls from anxious readers from every nook and corner. However, on investigation we have found that the reports were false and the 'call' to the duty manager at the airport regarding the fire was a hoax. Nevertheless, there was indeed a technical snag in the plane which caused a short delay before take off, but it was quickly sorted out and the flight took off from Mangalore as well as landed in Dubai safely.
It had been reported by the TV channels that 134 passengers were on board and that the tail of the plane had caught fire. They even stated that fire engines had been called to action whereas in reality, no such thing had taken place at all!

Mangalore: Peacock Hits Landing Jet Aircraft - Flight Delayed

Mangalore: Peacock Hits Landing Jet Aircraft - Flight Delayed Daijiworld Medi Network - RS / FL
Mangalore, July 21: A Jet Airways aircraft to Mumbai was delayed for nearly three hours after a peacock hit the aircraft while landing at the Mangalore Airport.
`A peacock hit the aircraft while landing and there is no casualties to any of the passengers' said officials of Jet Airways in a statement. `The flight was delayed for undertaking technical errors in the equipments of the aircraft and the flight finally took off at 6.30 pm' Jet Airways officials informed. The aircraft was scheduled to leave Mangalore airport today at 2.40 pm .
The sources said that the flight was on the way from Mumbai to Mangalore with 75 passengers on board. The peacock's sudden entry in to the runway at the time of landing at about 2.10 pm created the problem resulting in the delayed departure of the flight. According to officials the flight was delayed only to rectify the technical errors caused by the bird hit. The plane was cleared for flight after conducting a technical survey.

Mangalore : Confidence Building Top Priority of M R Vasudeva

Mangalore : Confidence Building Top Priority of M R Vasudeva
Daijiworld Media Network (FR)
Mangalore, Jul 15: M R Vasudeva assumed charge as the Airport Director of Mangalore Airport on July 14, 2010. Vasudeva has been transferred back to Mangalore from Coimbotore recently as the Airport Director in the level of General Manager.
When daijiworld contacted him to know his priorities on assuming charge at this crucial juncture, he stated that his foremost priority would be to undertake confidence building measures. “The public are unduly worried and I would like to reinforce our commitment to provide all safety and security measures in the airport to make it foolproof as much as possible. We will also ensure that we meet international civil aviation standards with the safety of passengers utmost in mind”, emphasized.
He denied the accusation that Mangalore being a table-top airport the runway is risky for landing. “The minds of the people are attuned to the oft repeated statements that table-top runways are hazardous, which is wrong. When a runway is made, it is made with a specific dimension whether it is on a hill top or on a plain ground and aircraft has to land there within that specific dimension. The pilot has to land the plane in that particular strip and all pilots are trained for that”, he asserted.
He also assured that airport would take necessary safety measures to get rid of all undue worries in public mind. He said sand arresters will be provided at the end of the runway as part of the safety measure. Vasudeva pointed out that there has been an increase in the number of passengers flying from Mangalore, as compared to last year. The number of passengers who travelled from Mangalore was 56,000 in June 2009, where as by June 2010 it rose to 63,000, which signifies that there has been an increase in the passengers who fly.
Without giving a specific date Vasudeva said that the New Integrated Terminal Building (NITB) will be thrown open to passenger traffic within the next 8 to 10 days. He will also have to oversee the all important task of extending the runway from the present 8,000 feet to 9,000 feet, to include a larger spillover area as part of the safety measure. The decision to extend the runway was taken by the Civil Aviation Ministry after the Air India Express crash that killed 158 lives in May this year.
With the much approachable and people-savvy Vasudeva as the Airport Director there is every possibility that the Mangalore International Airport will be able to win back the confidence of the people in the days to come.

M R Vasudeva Re-appointed Mangalore Airport Chief ?

Mangalore: It's Official - M R Vasudeva to Assume Charge on Jul 14
Mangalore, Jul 12: Airport Authority of India has been once again appointed M R Vasudeva as the Airport Director of the Mangalore Airport and he will assume charge on Wednesday July 14, 2010. Mr Vasudeva confirmed to daijiworld that he has been transferred back to Mangalore from Coimbatore as Airport Director in the level of a General Manager. Vasudeva had served as the Airport Director of Mangalore from April 2002 to March 2009 before he was transferred on promotion to Coimbotore last March. So in a way it is home coming for Vasudeva, who hails from Udupi and who has been instrumental in giving a state-of-the art runway to Mangalore Airport.
It may be recalled that M R Vasudeva was instrumental in developing the Bajpe airport into an International Airport that resulted in landing international flights in Mangalore airport during his tenure. He played a key role in developing the state-of-the art new concrete runway and the New Integrated Terminal Building (NITB), which is all set for opening for passenger traffic any time now. M R Vasudeva had evinced keen personal interest in ensuring the completion of the NITB, which of course got delayed after his transfer.
Knowing his contributions to the Mangalore Airport as Director, efforts were made by many especially the NRI forums to retain him in Mangalore to oversee the completion of the new terminal. Though he was given extension finally he was relieved when the efforts to retain him did not fructify.
But now he is back at a crucial time, nearly one and half month after the crash of Air India Express flight from Dubai on May 22, 2010 and also just at a time when the new terminal is going to be opened for passenger traffic, the day which many Mangaloreans have been looking forward to, for a long time now. There is still ambiguity about the NITB opening for passenger traffic which is getting postponed and one can expect Vasudeva to put an end to this uncertainty once he assumes charge.
So, this time around, Vasudeva has the additional responsibility of infusing courage and confidence among the staff, the airlines and the passengers who are still in a state of shock after the air crash tragedy. Apart from that he has to ensure continuance of the work he has begun and also undertake other safety measures.
Earlier News:
M R Vasudeva Re-appointed Mangalore Airport Chief ?
Mangalore, Jul 11 (DHNS): Coimbatore Airport Director M R Vasudeva, who was instrumental in developing the state-of-the art new concrete runway and the Rs 260 crore project that includes the New Integrated Terminal Building (NITB) has been re-appointed the Airport Director for Mangalore Airport.
Sources told Deccan Herald that Vasudeva has been re-appointed the Mangalore Airport Director with immediate effect and he is likely to take charge on Wednesday.
“The present airport director Peter Abraham too will continue as the airport director for some time, but Vasudev will be heading the operations,” it is reliably learnt.
It may be recalled that right from acquiring land for the second runway to construction of NITB and launching of direct flights to West Asia and many more services, Vasudeva played an instrumental role.

Mangalore: New Terminal to be Functional in 10 days

MANGALORE, Jun 23 (The Hindu): Director of the Mangalore airport Peter Abraham has said that the new integrated terminal building of the airport will be opened for passenger traffic in the next 10 days.
Speaking to The Hindu on Tuesday, a month after the May 22 crash of the Air India Express flight from Dubai, Abraham said that the opening of the new terminal was scheduled for June 1. “But the circumstances that prevailed in the aftermath of the crash prevented us from opening the terminal,” he said.
The date of commissioning would be decided by the local authorities in consultation with the regional headquarters of the Airports Authority of India at Chennai. The only aspect that was currently holding up the opening was the construction of a standby road, which would take another week, Mr. Abraham said.
The 360-m road, which would provide an alternate passage to the airport, is being built at the south-east end of the airport, abutting the now-abandoned Dakkan Hotel. Built at a cost of Rs. 35 lakh, this road will connect the airport to the Bajpe main road, via the Kenjar gram panchayat. This road will be used in emergencies only. Otherwise, it will remain closed.
ILS functional
The Instrument Landing System at the airport has been repaired and reinstalled. The ILS could not be used after the plane crashed into one of its crucial components on May 22. The ILS was re-commissioned on June 16, Mr. Abraham said.
Salvaging the wreck
There is still no clarity on when the wreckage of the plane will be removed from the crash site. While Mr. Abraham said that it was the responsibility of the airline to conduct the salvage, Station Manger of Air India Chellam Prasad said that the airline did not have the written clearance from the Airports Authority of India to go ahead. Mr. Abraham said that the airline was free to build a temporary shelter, next to the old engineering office near the new terminal building, whenever it wished.

Air travellers to be Compensated for Delayed, Cancelled Flight

New Delhi, Jun 21, (PTI): Air travellers would now be compensated for cancellation or delays in flights which have not been caused by situations like fog or any reason beyond the control of the airlines, if a new draft rule is implemented.
New rules detailing the conditions of compensation have been drafted by the aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation, which has invited comments from the public before finalising them.
The decision came in the wake of rapid expansion of air services on domestic and international routes and the necessity for the government to ensure appropriate protection for air travellers in case of flight disruptions, denied boarding, cancellations and delays without due notice to the passengers, an official spokesperson said.
As the distinction between scheduled and non-scheduled services was coming down, such protectionary measures would also be provided to passengers travelling on non-scheduled flights, like charters, also.
The new rules or the Civil Aviation Requirement (CAR) would bring the Indian aviation law in tandem with the Montreal Convention in regard to the liabilities of the airlines.
The operating airline would, however, be under no obligation if the cancellations and delays are caused by events beyond its control, like natural calamities or political instability.
Under the draft CAR, the financial compensation would be given only if the amount of tickets cost is higher than the compensation amount.
It would be Rs. 2,000 or the value of the ticket whichever is less for flights having a block time of up to and including one hour. Till two hours, the compensation would be Rs 3,000 or the value of the ticket whichever is less.
Similarly, if the delay is more than two hours, the amount would be Rs 4,000 or the value of the ticket whichever is less.
The draft rule provides that alternatively, the passenger would be offered the choice of a refund at the price it was purchased, a flight to the first point of departure and alternative transportation to the final destination wherever applicable.
Besides, the passengers shall be offered free of charge meals and refreshments and hotel accommodation, including transfers, when necessary.

Bajpe Airport: Runway Length to be Increased from 8000 to 9000 ft

New Delhi, May 30 (PTI): The runway length of Mangalore airport, which saw a major air crash a week ago that claimed 158 lives, will be increased from the present 8,000 ft to 9,000 ft to include a larger spillover area, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel has said. "In fact, we have already taken a decision to extend the runway from 8,000 ft to 9,000 ft. In that 9,000 ft, the spillover area and all such factors will be taken into account," the Minister said.
He maintained that the government would have an "open mind" to implement any measure arising out of the lessons from the Mangalore air crash.
Replying to questions in Karan Thapar's 'Devil's Advocate' programme in CNN-IBN, Patel said the existing 8,000 ft runway was "fully compliant" with all the required guidelines and had a spillover area of 90 metres, which is the threshold area of the runway, based on its length.
"Though I am not an expert, but I can say with a sense of responsibility that if there are any mandatory requirements which are not fulfilled, not only in Mangalore but at any other airport in the country, these shall be corrected."
To a question on having an approach radar at Mangalore, he said it was "already being contemplated. Whatever is required will be done".
Observing that the Mangalore runway was earlier 6,000 feet in length, he said the risks of flying the same type of aircraft was larger. The present one was a new runway, he said. "Whatever has to be learnt from the air crash and whatever has to be improved upon will be done," Patel said.
Soon after the crash, he said he had chaired a high-level meeting of officials and a Civil Aviation Safety Advisory Council (CASAC) was set up to advise Directorate General of Civil Aviation on all aspects relating to safety.
Asserting that "Indian aviation is safe", Patel said "aviation per se can only be either 100 per cent safe or zero. ... Aviation is not a game of chance .... Any error can lead to what happened in Mangalore," he said, adding that the inquiry would establish what led to the crash.
Asked whether the International Civil Aviation Organisation and the US Federal Aviation Administration had downgraded Indian aviation sector's safety record, he said it was "absolutely wrong. The ICAO and the FAA both have certified that (aviation in) India is 100 per cent safe."
While disagreeing with the suggestion that the DGCA rules and procedures were "stand alone" and did not match the international norms, Patel said the regulatory body would examine all issues in totality and take necessary decisions.
"Let us not scare people away. These are difficult times but let us not make it an issue where people lose faith in our own system," he added.