The Hindu Business Line : Air Deccan favours continuance of Begumpet Airport

Air Deccan has joined the voices that supported the continuance of the Begumpet Airport even after the completion of the international airport at Shamshabad in 2008.

A senior official of the Bangalore-based airline felt that the existing airport should be allowed to continue at least for handling smaller aircraft that catered to the neighbourhood destinations. Mr R. Krishnaswamy, Head (Corporate Planning) of Air Deccan, told Business Line that the Begumput Airport could well be positioned as a regional hub.

Under the concessional agreement, the existing airport would be closed for civilian operations once the new airport at Shamshabad starts its operations. It, however, could be used for military, air force, police and VIP movements. This clause had been attracting strong opposition, including from the Parliamentary Committee on Airport Development headed by Mr Nilotpal Basu.

According to Mr Krishnaswamy, the turbo prop aircraft would only add to the congestion and might not add significantly to the revenues of the airport. The time taken by a turbo aircraft to take off and land was much longer than the jet planes. Two jets can take off and land in the time consumed by one ATR for taking off and landing.

This, he pointed out, would add to the congestion.

Unless they went for a simultaneous development of phase I and II, the capacity of the new airport with the first phase would just be enough to serve the existing demand then.

Absence of ATRs would help them optimise their capacity.

Another argument in favour of the continuance of the airport to handle smaller aircraft was that people should not be made to travel long distances by road for short duration flights.

Mr Krishnaswamy also said that outside India it was not unusual to see two neighbourhood airports. "Even in Mumbai, there is no proposal to close down the Santa Cruz airport (domestic airport) even after completing the international airport," he said.

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