The Hindu Business Line : Airport terminals to have `intelligent buildings' soon

MR ASHOK CHAWLA (second from left), Civil Aviation Secretary, Mr Dieter Heinz, President, GATE (German Airport Technology & Equipment), Mr Stephen Brooks, Chairman, Mack Brooks Exhibition Ltd, and Dr K. Ramalingam, Chairman, Airports Authority of India, at the inauguration of `inter airport India 2007' in Delhi on Wednesday. — Sandeep Saxena

Advertisement

New Delhi Feb. 21 An airport terminal building that is not only aesthetically appealing but also adjusts the temperature and lighting automatically depending on the number of passengers in the building and the time of the day could soon become a reality across the country.

The Chairman of Airports Authority of India (AAI), Mr K. Ramalingam, said the future airport terminals being built around the country would be "intelligent buildings''.

"The development of intelligent airport terminal buildings is in the conceptual stage but will soon become a reality. We are also introducing new facilities for screening of passenger bags that would not be visible to the passenger but is very effective. The introduction of these and other facilities will help make the airport terminal more effective and functional," Mr Ramalingam said at the inaugural session of the three-day `inter airport India' conference on Wednesday.

Besides, AAI has also introduced other measures to facilitate passengers' journey like implementing Common User Terminal Equipment (CUTE), which allows a passenger to check in at any counter at the airport.

In addition, steps are also being taken to reduce the amount of time that an aircraft has spent circling over domestic airports.

Rising growth

Addressing the seminar, the Civil Aviation Secretary, Mr Ashok Chawla, pointed to the growth that the domestic civil aviation sector was witnessing. "During April-December last year, domestic air traffic grew by 40.9 per cent over the same period in the previous year. Similarly, international passenger traffic grew by 14.9 per cent while freight movement grew by 10.7 per cent during the same period," he said.

Pointing to the investment opportunity in the sector, the Secretary said that it was estimated that an investment of $320 billion would be required for the development of a variety of infrastructure projects including airports.