IBNLive Chat: India can't be airport hub for S Asia

GROUND REALITIES: CNN-IBN aviation correspondent Karma Paljor in the ibnlive.com chat room.

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Keywords: Hyderabad, Bangalore

As controversy brews over the new Hyderabad and Bangalore airports, the big debate is whether one airport is enough for cities growing at a fast pace. CNN-IBN aviation correspondent Karma Paljor interacted with IBNLive.com readers and answered their questions in an online chat.

Durga: Does the newly constructed Hyderabad International Airport meets at least the international standards in terms of service/quality? As it is a private enterprise, who owns the responsibility of the security?

Karma Paljor: The responsibility of security is with the government. The Hyderabad International Airport got its operating license only after the Director General of Civil Aviation inspected it as per international standards.

Mathew John: Is there a decision as yet on the present Banglaore airport?

Karma Paljor: No, the government is still working on it.

Iman: Can the airlines company provide buses in those two cities for picking up the passengers? The buses could come to some important bus stops at a regulation of one hour or so. I think it will bring some relief to the passengers who are facing issues with travelling to the new airport. A reasonable fare could be charged for the bus pick-up. I remember Indian Airlines had this service earlier.

Karma Paljor: I think the two airports are already providing shuttle services to these airports.

John Kottoor: Instead of fully private airports, what is your opinion on government stake in the airports? The reason being, many key decisions on connectivity are to be ensured by the government. Having a share would add pressure on the government to act on it. The article on Cochin airport two days ago, marking it a huge success considering the lowest cost, high profitability and so on…

Karma Paljor: The government or rather the Airports Authority does have a share in all the new airports which are being built. For example Delhi and Mumbai.

Vishnu: The simple fact is that it does not take more than one and a half hour to reach the new airport in Bangalore from anywhere in the city. I have personally travelled from 3 locations. At a prime time of about 7 PM, it took me only 1 hour 30 minutes from the southern parts of the city. It is media hype about lack of connectivity. Added to this, the Bangalore Corporation is making magic box underpasses at all junctions from the city center to the highway and to the airport. Already 3 underpasses are almost ready and all will be ready by the opening date of May 11. Thus, I want to ask you why does the media come up with these irresponsible data based on no facts and fool people into believing that connectivity is bad. It is not perfect but it is certainly better than the road to the present airport, which is always jammed! Already it takes 1 hour from most places in the city to the present airport, the new airport adds just a little more!

Karma Paljor: Thank you for bringing it up sir. I am sure the authorities are doing the best to improve connectivity.

Job: This is regarding BIAL. Why can't we have two airports, and give the airline operators a flexibility to decide which flights they want to operate out of which airport, and place a mandate that half of their flights should be based out of BIAL? This will take care of dividing the traffic load evenly among the airports, and the total traffic throughout the city will get access to airports, which I think, will be a more optimal solution. What do you think?

Karma Paljor: Once we have two airports there will be competition. We will need an airport regulator, which we still don't have. Right now the HAL airport will win hands down because of its closeness to the city.

Shaun: I wanted to know about the second airport in Delhi(Greater Noida). Do you think the 150 km restriction will be removed and do you know if DIAL will allow an airport that will be a competition for theirs? What is the status?

Karma Paljor: The government is confident that they will have a second airport. The clearances are there and the aviation ministry is even looking to remove the 150 km restriction.

Phani Challa: Have you had a chance to visit the new Hyderabad Airport? If yes, please share your impressions in the sense how does it compare to airports over the world. Essentially has the public-private partnership delivered in Hyderabad case?

Karma Paljor: It is a great modern airport that they have built. However, a little more coordination with airlines and international aviation agencies would have helped.

Srikanth Inturi: Why is that a controversy is being surrounded even after constructing a world class airport in Hyderabad in record time and have far better facilities than that of Bangalore or any other airport in India and why don't we appreciate these world class future airports?

Karma Paljor: There are certain problems with these airports and the people are just airing their views. I guess in a democratic country like ours it is certainly acceptable.

Uday Mallya: I think having two airports for big cities is the need of the day. I think on one hand we are allowing low cost airlines and other premium airlines like Jet and Kingfisher to increase their services and on the other hand we are not giving them the right kind of infrastructure. This is totally unfair. With the increase in number of services, the traffic has increased. The existing airports like the one in Mumbai and Bangalore are in the midst of the city with no scope for expansion thus the need for a second airport is imminent. Apart from these cities, I think even the airports in Tier II and Tier III cities need to be upgraded.

Karma Paljor: Having two airports for metros like Delhi and Mumbai is certainly being given serious thought.

Ankit: It's really unfair to charge the development fee to even domestic travellers. Already the total fares for the no-frills carriers have increased substantially because of very high fuel surcharge. Do you think many middle-class people will refrain from travelling frequently and can it affect the low-fare companies? Another significant question is that given the high growth rate of the city and availability of rich, frequent passengers from Surat, don't you think the Surat airport should be quipped with facilities at par to get well-connected and even the aviation companies should look forward to grab this golden opportunity. Do you see some political conspiracy behind this negligence or some vested interests? I hope you answer both the questions, with more stress on the second one. Thank you.

Karma Paljor: I think Surat is going to be modernised very soon by the Airports Authority of India. This will be done along with the other 35 non-metro airports.

Kalyan: I am a student from IIT Madras working on ‘Risks in Airport privatisation'. What do you think are some of the major risks in Privatising airports in India? What do think on having an independent regulator for Airport Sector as we have TRAI for Telecom Sector?

Karma Paljor: The government has proposed an Airport Regulator. I think it is only a matter of a few months before we have one.

Adiga: The parliament has the legislative authority or the power to make a law that would facilitate the operations of two airports in a city. The BIAL airport is a disaster, as from day one it would be handling capacity near saturation.

Karma Paljor: I think the Aviation Minister Praful Patel has said that he will look into the issue and see if he can keep both airports open. There are legal issue the government will have to sort with BIAL.