GMR Infrastructure subsidiary DIAL Completes One Year of Progress

GMR Infrastructure Ltd has announced that Delhi International Airport Pvt Ltd (DIAL), a joint venture consortium mandated to modernize and restructure the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA), on May 03, 2007 successfully completed its first year of operations. DIAL took charge of the IGI Airport on May 03, 2006 and has since carried out several steps for the upgradation of facilities for passengers and airlines.

The Master Plan for the development of a new airport complex was submitted to the Ministry of Civil Aviation. Work on the integrated passenger terminal and runway commenced in Feb 2007 and the new terminal would be inaugurated in 2010 before the Commonwealth Games. Prior to that in 2008, a brand new runway and domestic terminal will be ready to cater to the growing traffic.

With the new terminal and runway, Delhi Airport will be able to cater to 37 million passengers per annum (mppa) and handle 75 aircraft movements per hour. The Master Plan was drafted with an ultimate design capacity of 100 million passengers per annum.

Prior to the submission of the Master Plan, DIAL commenced work on the modernization of existing terminals and airside infrastructure. The terminal interiors were given a new look with flooring, wall cladding & false roofs, all getting changed. Plush, comfortable seating was added and number of baggage trolleys was augmented. Lighting and air- conditioning were improved and the rest rooms were modernized. The terminal exteriors too got a modern look with the addition of a new facade.

For passengers, several new amenities were added. Terminal 1B was expanded to add check in counters for new airlines. New x-ray machines, metal detectors and other security equipment have been added to enhance the security of passengers. In addition, some of the best known food and beverage brands including Nirula's, Cafe Coffee Day, Baskin Robbins, Subway, Vo-China amongst others set up shop at the airport. In addition, a brand new 24x7 multi-cuisine restaurant - Balaji Express was inaugurated at Terminal 1B.

Number of Pre-paid taxi counters was increased and a new luxury car rental facility run by Avis was also inaugurated. Telecom facilities at the airport got a major boost, with the Inauguration of new PCO booths and soon the airport will have Wi-Fi internet facilities as well. The international terminal (Terminal 2) saw the opening of brand new duty-free shops run by Alpha Future. The shops stock a wide range of international brands in confectionary, watches, liquor, tobacco and other categories.

Modernization works of Terminal 2 were commenced and are targeted for completion in 2008. Passengers will benefit from additional check-in, immigration and customs counters. A state of the art in baggage handling system will ensure smoother and safer baggage clearance.

The airside infrastructure was augmented to allow greater number of aircraft movements. A parallel taxiway was added to the secondary runway 09-27 along with new rapid exit and link taxiways. This allowed both the runways at IGI Airport to be used simultaneously for nearly 10 hours per day. A fleet of modern follow me vehicles was inducted to guide aircraft in low visibility conditions. Delhi Airport is India’s only airport with CAT IIIB Instrument Landing System which allows aircraft to land in visibility as low as 50m. DIAL upgraded several new aircraft parking stands to CAT III standards. IGI Airport joined the select club of Asian airports to have conducted a special study known as the FAG study to improve runway lighting systems to global standards.

Recognizing the needs and expectations of the modern day air traveller, DIAL commenced an in- depth training program to equip its staff to impart world class service to passengers. DIAL and AAI staff were sent on extensive study programmes airports like Singapore, Frankfurt, Kuala Lumpur to imbibe global best practices. House Keeping staff was trained specially by the Taj Group of hotels. In addition, regular training programmes in service quality, computer training amongst others have also been commenced. Some of these programmes have borne fruit - for example, the International Cargo Terminal was awarded the prestigious ISO 9001:2000 quality certificate.

Delhi airport will soon add a feather to its cap when it will become the first airport in India host the world’s largest passenger aircraft - Airbus A380 on May 6th. During the course of the coming months, DIAL will further develop the facilities at Delhi airport and enhance the passenger experience.

Source : Equity Bulls

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