India Airports Conference 2010
AVIATION & AIRPORTS

India Airports Conference 2010

The recently held India Airports Conference highlighted key issues affecting the growth of the aviation sector.

Airports' economic regulation would be on a price cap basis, Sandeep Prakash, the Secretary of the newly established Airports Economic Regulatory Authority of India (AERAI), told a gathering of airport-industry professionals and policymakers. Speaking at the India Airports Conference 2010 in the national capital on 1,2010 December, Prakash reiterated that the regulation would be 'single-till', attracting a price-cap on tariffs based on a combination of aero and non-aero revenues. He said combining the two kinds of revenues would probably bring down user development fees (UDF) and passenger fees (PSF). The single-till regulation was on the cards since AERAI's previous announcement in this regard earlier this year.

Kapil Kaul, CEO, CAPA, said that such regulation is needed in the country.

The pressing agenda for Indian airports lies in simultaneously gearing up, somewhat reactively, for the surge of capacity addition in passenger and cargo, and sprucing up the levels of efficiencies.

The airports conference deliberated on how capacity addition and efficiency can about complement each other. Speakers discussed how to achieve the goal of adding capacity while being as efficient as possible.

GK Chaukiyal, Member, Operations, Airports Authority of India (AAI), said that "expansion of capacity is already underway in many ways, and the Aircraft Acquisition Committee receives about 25 requests each month for new aircraft. The number of aircraft has grown from 225 in 2000 to 735 this year, and projected to grow to 1,200 by 2015. He hoped that this kind of capacity addition would help reduce the population-per-aircraft ratio. At 2.89 million per aircraft, India tops the world list for that ratio."

Robey Lal, Aviation Planning Advisor, Intercontinental Consultants and Technocrats, asked "Is it possible to accurately match capacities with user demand for economic operations?" Not in reality, he said, calling it the Capacity Myth. Arun Chandran, Project Director, Delhi International Airport (DIAL), and Director, Project Management, Brinckerhoff, made a case for developing airports through strategic planning and management.

Subrato Paul, CEO, Bengal Aerot-ropolis (BAPL), which is developing an airport at Durgapur in collaboration with Singapore's Changi airport and the first of its kind in India to complete financial closure and land acquisition, shared his experience of building greenfield airports in non-urban areas, and maintained that "if modern day cities are to compete in an economy based on efficient systems, they need to be built around airports." He said filling the aviation need with the urbanisation gap was an effective way to maintain inclusive growth. "Think of airports in smaller cities alone," Paul said, "and only coupled with city-side development."

Vidya Basarkod, CEO, Reliance Airports Developers, said that the government should support its private partners in overcoming viability issues, perhaps through cost-sharing in security, CNS/ATM, tax exemptions or reductions on ATF, and so on. Uttar Pradesh's Tourism Secretary Awanish Awasthi discussed the difficulties of attracting a partner to build and operate the Kushinagar airport on the Nepal border.

Pratap Padode, Managing Director, a ASAPP Media Said, "The theme of our conference," embodies the need in our airport sector, where the journey to progress has begun."

Write in at feedback@ASAPPmedia.com

The recently held India Airports Conference highlighted key issues affecting the growth of the aviation sector.Airports' economic regulation would be on a price cap basis, Sandeep Prakash, the Secretary of the newly established Airports Economic Regulatory Authority of India (AERAI), told a gathering of airport-industry professionals and policymakers. Speaking at the India Airports Conference 2010 in the national capital on 1,2010 December, Prakash reiterated that the regulation would be 'single-till', attracting a price-cap on tariffs based on a combination of aero and non-aero revenues. He said combining the two kinds of revenues would probably bring down user development fees (UDF) and passenger fees (PSF). The single-till regulation was on the cards since AERAI's previous announcement in this regard earlier this year.Kapil Kaul, CEO, CAPA, said that such regulation is needed in the country.The pressing agenda for Indian airports lies in simultaneously gearing up, somewhat reactively, for the surge of capacity addition in passenger and cargo, and sprucing up the levels of efficiencies.The airports conference deliberated on how capacity addition and efficiency can about complement each other. Speakers discussed how to achieve the goal of adding capacity while being as efficient as possible.GK Chaukiyal, Member, Operations, Airports Authority of India (AAI), said that expansion of capacity is already underway in many ways, and the Aircraft Acquisition Committee receives about 25 requests each month for new aircraft. The number of aircraft has grown from 225 in 2000 to 735 this year, and projected to grow to 1,200 by 2015. He hoped that this kind of capacity addition would help reduce the population-per-aircraft ratio. At 2.89 million per aircraft, India tops the world list for that ratio.Robey Lal, Aviation Planning Advisor, Intercontinental Consultants and Technocrats, asked Is it possible to accurately match capacities with user demand for economic operations? Not in reality, he said, calling it the Capacity Myth. Arun Chandran, Project Director, Delhi International Airport (DIAL), and Director, Project Management, Brinckerhoff, made a case for developing airports through strategic planning and management.Subrato Paul, CEO, Bengal Aerot-ropolis (BAPL), which is developing an airport at Durgapur in collaboration with Singapore's Changi airport and the first of its kind in India to complete financial closure and land acquisition, shared his experience of building greenfield airports in non-urban areas, and maintained that if modern day cities are to compete in an economy based on efficient systems, they need to be built around airports. He said filling the aviation need with the urbanisation gap was an effective way to maintain inclusive growth. Think of airports in smaller cities alone, Paul said, and only coupled with city-side development.Vidya Basarkod, CEO, Reliance Airports Developers, said that the government should support its private partners in overcoming viability issues, perhaps through cost-sharing in security, CNS/ATM, tax exemptions or reductions on ATF, and so on. Uttar Pradesh's Tourism Secretary Awanish Awasthi discussed the difficulties of attracting a partner to build and operate the Kushinagar airport on the Nepal border.Pratap Padode, Managing Director, a ASAPP Media Said, The theme of our conference, embodies the need in our airport sector, where the journey to progress has begun.Write in at feedback@ASAPPmedia.com

Next Story
Technology

AirBrick Infra Sets Rs 1 billion Target, Expands to Dubai and Tier-II Cities

AirBrick Infra, one of India’s fastest-growing AI-led commercial interior design and build firms, has announced a sales order target of Rs 1 billion for FY 2025–26. The projection represents a 50 per cent growth over the previous fiscal year and reflects rising demand, increased repeat business, and the company's robust tech-first delivery model.  Now in its third year of operations, AirBrick continues its rapid scale-up, having successfully delivered over 70 projects spanning 3 lakh sq ft in FY 2023–24. FY 2024–25 witnessed the onboarding of several Fortune 500 clients, sett..

Next Story
Resources

Virtusa Foundation Powers Green Education Drive in Bengaluru

The Virtusa Foundation, CSR arm of digital engineering and technology leader Virtusa Corporation, has announced key infrastructure and mobility initiatives at the Ramakrishna Mission, Shivanahalli, Bengaluru. The launch marks the inauguration of a 16-room residential facility for lady teachers and the deployment of two solar-powered electric buses, underscoring Virtusa’s commitment to its core pillars of Education, Environment and Empowerment (3Es).  Located on the forest fringe near Bannerghatta National Park, the initiative supports tribal and underserved communities, complementi..

Next Story
Infrastructure Urban

Godrej Enterprises Drives India’s Smart Green Logistics Shift

As India accelerates its transformation into a global manufacturing and logistics hub, Godrej Enterprises Group (GEG) is taking the lead with its smart, sustainable intralogistics solutions. Through its Material Handling Equipment (MHE) and Storage Solutions businesses, GEG is redefining operational efficiency in modern warehouses and factories using IoT, automation, and AI. GEG has consistently maintained a 20–25 per cent market share in the intralogistics sector over the past three years. Today, over 37 per cent of GEG’s revenues come from its Good & Green portfolio, and its net..

Advertisement

Advertisement

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Get daily newsletters around different themes from Construction world.

STAY CONNECTED

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Talk to us?