Metros can have second airports

In a major shift in policy on airport infrastructure development, new airports will be allowed to come up within 150 km of existing ones.

This paves the way for clearance of a bunch of proposals for airports near or in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai.

However, private companies that have been handed over the existing airports in Delhi and Mumbai (and in other cities like Bangalore and Hyderabad) as part of the government's airport privatisation programme will have the first right of refusal to develop the second airport.

Some state governments have mooted proposals to develop a second airport close to an existing one for easing traffic congestion.

The Uttar Pradesh government has proposed an airport at Greater Noida (near Delhi), the West Bengal government in Kolkata, and the Maharashtra government in Navi Mumbai.

The four metros handle over 60 per cent of the country's air traffic, often leading to choking of airspace and delays in aircraft landing and take-off. The existing policy was drawn up in the early 50s. With lack of further capacity at existing airports and the booming air traffic, a need was felt to remove the restriction.

Notably, the government had committed to existing private sector developers that a new airport would not come up within 150 km of an existing one, so that their revenue projections were protected. The ministry now hopes that the first right of refusal granted to these developers will ensure their agreement to the move.

The change is expected to resolve the serious infrastructure problem faced by airlines. The Delhi airport, for instance, handles over 15 million passengers a year, nearly double its capacity.

Though its capacity will increase to 25 million by 2010, following the modernisation (by the private developer), the projected traffic in Delhi at that time will be around 30-35 million. So, there is a justification for a new airport.

In Mumbai, too, with Reliance's large SEZ zone coming up, which will be nearly one-third the size of the city, a new airport at Navi Mumbai seems economically viable.

Another beneficiary of the move will be low-cost carriers (LCCs), which can use secondary airports with lower user charges.

Airport infrastructure, including parking bays, landing and navigation charges, and rents for hangers constitute over 20 per cent of an LCC's overall costs. This will go down with the latest development.

Across the globe, in cities with multiple airports, LCCs use secondary airports with lower parking and landing charges to cut costs. In fact, domestic LCCs have been pressing the government for multiple airports in busy cities.