The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Trial run at Shamshabad airport successful

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Wednesday, Feb 13, 2008
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Trial run at Shamshabad airport successful

S. Nagesh Kumar

No commercial operations at Begumpet airport in future, says Praful Patel

— Photo: Satish. H

Flying high: The first two flights which touched down at the new Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad on Tuesday.

HYDERABAD: A small but significant step in the direction of operationalising the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport at Shamshabad was made when two commercial flights from Mumbai made near-perfect landing on Tuesday.

Employees at the airport as well as passengers travelling in the aircraft of Kingfisher Airlines and Jet Airways broke into applause after the “smooth proving flight touchdowns” as Union Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel and Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy watched from the apron.

Hyderabad’s real tryst with what Mr. Patel described as “India’s first truly world class airport” will begin on March 16 when full-scale operations begin, two days after UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi inaugurates it formally. The Rs. 2,478-crore airport has been developed by the GMR Group in a public-partnership mode in which it holds 63 per cent equity, Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhard (11 per cent) and the Andhra Pradesh Government and the Airport Authority of India (AAI) 11 per cent each. The airport has a 1.05 lakh sq. metre glass-encased terminal with a capacity to handle 12 million passengers annually.

Describing the trial run as “a momentous occasion”, Dr. Reddy announced a steep cut in the sales tax on aviation turbine fuel (ATF) from the present 32 per cent to four per cent to encourage more carriers to include the Shamshabad airport in their network. This sales tax concession will cost the State exchequer about Rs. 60 crore per annum.

Connectivity

Parallel to these celebrations, a huge question mark hung over reliable connectivity to the international airport as the PV Narasimha Rao Expressway leading to it is far from completion. Mr. Patel brushed aside this issue as a concern of the A. P. Government saying that related questions be directed at the Chief Minister. He hinted that the Centre would make efforts to have a uniform tax on ATF in all the States.

The Union Minister concurred with the view that the proposed airport user charge (Rs. 750 for each passenger across the board) was stiff. Asserting that these charges ought to be lower for shorter distances, he said the matter could be negotiated with the airport operator.

He disclosed that the airport economic regulatory authority likely to be established by mid-2008 would look into all these issues.

Mr. Patel cleared the air about the future of Begumpet airport by announcing there would be no commercial operations. Answering a question about the protest demonstration staged by airport employees, he said this did not, however, mean it would be closed as training and related activities would continue there. “But, it will not be a profit centre”.

Lauding the State Government for its “bold and progressive decision” in facilitating the international airport, the Union Minister also appreciated the move to promote airports in all districts. In fact, about 400-500 smaller airports were likely to come up in the country in the next five years for which a new infrastructure policy was on the anvil, he said.

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