First in India: Bengaluru airport to integrate military, civil radars

Bengaluru, Dec 18: The Indian Air Force (IAF) has taken a major initiative to co-locate IAF radar controllers with Airport Authority of India (AAI) radar controllers at Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru (KIAB) to facilitate simultaneous operations from Yelahanka air base and KIAB.

This would be the first time in the country that military and civil radar controllers are being co-located for providing radar control services within the respective airspaces, said a defence spokesperson in a press release.

Co-location would facilitate dynamic co-ordination between the controllers, which would not only enhance safety of operations but also ensure exploitation of the second runway at KIAB to its full potential, the statement said.

IAF conducts ab-initio flying training for its fledgling aviation on transport aircraft and helicopters at Yelahanka air base adjacent to KIAB. The close proximity between Yelahanka and the new runway at KIAB requires aircraft from both airfield to fly accurately to ensure that specified minimum radar separation between two aircraft is not infringed, the statement said.

A joint working group (JWG) was constituted by Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) comprising members of Indian Air Force, Airport Authority of India(AAI), Bengaluru International Airport Limited (BIAL) and MoCA to formulate procedures for safe conduct of operations without compromising on civil or military operational requirement at both the airports.

The JWG had several meetings in the last few years to gradually evolve safe operational procedures, ably supported at the apex level by Air HQ and all the stakeholders, said the statment.

Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru (KIAB), is among the fastest growing airports in the world and it is estimated that 65 million passengers per annum would use the airport as a transit point by 2024-2025.

Key to handling the forecast growth of civil aviation is the second runway made operational recently at KIAB with the active support of Indian Air Force, the statement added.