AAI ropes in consultancy firms for feasibility study

BY A CORRESPONDENT
April 13, 2006

The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has roped in two consultancy firms to study the technical and economic feasibility of developing non-metro airports. The firms - US-based Louis Beger Group and Delhi- based Intercontinental Consultancy and Technocrats-- will make preliminary reports on Tiruchirapalli, Indore, Bhopal, Nagpur, and Visakhapatnam among others.

The recommendations would be submitted to AAI in the next 45 days, which would be then reviewed by the authority. The final report will form the basis of the future roadmaps of the industry, said AAI Advisor (Airport Operations and Management) AV Anand.

The report will cover areas of airport operations, facilities at the airports and connectivity for both domestic and international services among others. It will also cover economic feasibility, including cargo and passenger potential, and identifications of new routes.

AAI would look at commercial development of airport land with private participation, he said. The companies had earlier submitted similar reports on Goa, Lucknow, Madurai, Mangalore and Thiruvananthapuram airports.