Govt may reopen HAL, Begumpet airports

Slots, parking bays unavailable at major airports

Airlines have asked the government to reopen old airports to ease congestion at existing ones. 

The civil aviation ministry is considering reopening the HAL airport in Bengaluru and Begumpet airport in Hyderabad.

Airlines have told the government there is a shortage of slots and overnight parking bays at most major airports and have suggested smaller nearby airports be used as alternatives beyond watch hours. 

Among the airports suggested are Nagpur and Aurangabad for Mumbai, Agra for Delhi and Arakkonam for Chennai.

“There is an acute shortage of slots and parking bays at most airports. We did not get preferred slots