Hyderabad, Bangalore airports to be functional ahead of schedule

Mumbai, Dec 21 (UNI) The international airports at Bangalore and Hyderabad will be functional ahead of schedule.

Speaking on the occasion of the 70th year of existence of Larsen and Toubro today, Union Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel said that Rajiv Gandhi International Airport at Hyderabad will be commissioned on March 12, 2008 whereas, Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) will be inaugurated on March 28, 2008.

The passenger trials in these airports had already started in August 2007 and trials by airlines will commence in early February next year, once the air traffic control tower gets commissioned around mid-January.

The Rajiv Gandhi International Airport is located at Shamshabad, 22 km from Hyderabad and is being built by Hyderabad International Airport Limited (HIAL), a public-private joint venture between GMR Group, Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB), State Government of Andhra Pradesh and Airports Authority of India (AAI).

GMR Group holds 63 per cent of the equity, MAHB 11 per cent, while the Andhra Pradesh Government and AAI each hold 13 per cent equity.

The Bangalore International Airport is located at Devanhalli, 30 km from Bangalore. Construction of the airport began in July 2005 by BIAL and was scheduled to be completed and operational by April 2, 2008.

BIAL is a public limited company comprising Siemens Project Ventures (Germany) with 40 per cent, Unique (Flughafen Zurich AG) Zurich Airport (Switzerland) with 17 per cent, Larsen&Toubro India with 17 per cent, AAI with 13 per cent and KSIIDC with 13 per cent equity as five share holders.

After the commissioning of BIAL, the airport will take all the commercial flights that are currently operating out of the Hindustan Aeronautical Limited Airport at Bangalore.

UNI