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Mohammed Yousuf

Starting operations: A large number of visitors gather at the arrival lounge of the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport at Shamshabad, 30 km from Hyderabad, in the early hours on Sunday. A Lufthansa flight touched down in rainy weather, kickstarting the operations at the airport.

K.V. Kurmanath

Hyderabad, March 23 On Sunday, Varun, 10, woke up to a quiet morning. It was a pleasant change for his sister and parents too as it was only the crows and doves that were making noise and not the bustling ‘big birds’ landing and taking-off at the Begumpet airport.

Like this family, thousands of others living near the airport are greatly relieved too, even as the fact that the airport ceases to operate sinks in slowly.

“We thought we have to live with it forever. But, fortunately, the noise would be a thing of the past. Moreover, we can expect less traffic,” said Mr Kashyap, Varun’s father. The family lives in an apartment complex abutting the compound wall of the Begumpet airport.

But there are others who say they will miss the airport and the aircraft flying in and out of it.

The airport, which came into being in 1937 mostly for the use of the erstwhile Nizam rulers, has emerged as one of the busiest and safest airports in the country, with huge growths of traffic. With the airport reaching saturation and with little scope for expansion, a new airport was planned at Shamshabad with an initial capacity of 12 million passengers a year.

Although the Begumpet airport was expected to close operations from March 15, protests by low-cost airlines over enhanced ground-handling charges had forced the Ministry of Civil Aviation to defer the date. It was finally made defunct (for commercial operations) from March 23.

On Saturday night, the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) wore a festive look. A group of traditional drummers from the neighbouring Nalgonda district performed and their beats reverberated through the passenger terminal building. A Lufthansa aircraft arrived from Frankfurt and journalists crowded around the passengers as they checked out of the airport, to find out what they felt about the new airport. Mr G.M. Rao, Chairman of GMR group, welcomed the passengers.

However, a SpiceJet flight from Ahmedabad had managed to sneak in well before the first official landing (of the Lufthansa flight) at 12.05. A high-level GHIAL (GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd) meeting had decided to allow the SpiceJet flight to land even though it was scheduled to arrive only at 12.55.

On Sunday, the festive atmosphere continued with hundreds of people from the city thronging the airport for a peep at its ‘world-class’ looks.

Though the passengers generally liked the aesthetics of the new airport, the issue of transportation stared at some as they emerged from the airport.

A KLM aircraft from Amsterdam failed to land at 1.45 a.m. and landed at Mumbai instead, creating a flutter. “The pilot turned the flight to Mumbai because of a doubt regarding where to land,” a RGIA official told Business Line.

However, in the absence of any information, relatives and friends waiting to receive the passengers were left high and dry.

“These are teething problems. This is a learning process. In a few weeks, things will settle down,” the official said.

Meanwhile, the AAI staff and Indian Airlines staff who had begun a flash strike on Friday have “deferred” the protest, pending talks with the Government.

More Stories on : Airlines | Modernisation | Infrastructure | Andhra Pradesh

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