Yet another spanner in the works. That?s thanks to the verdict on the Bengaluru International Airport. From gearing up for a March 28 inauguration, the civil aviation ministry has now pushed it to a May 11, 2008 take off. The reason cited: non-readiness of air traffic control (ATC) and safety systems at the airport. So again, things are in a state of flux.

The other road bump, the strike by the Airport Authority of India (AAI) workers has been a wash out. Credit that to the assurance given by civil aviation minister Praful Patel that workers? interests at the old airports in both Bangalore and Hyderabad will be taken care of. But the uncertainties haven?t ebbed.

It seemed like a transition of sorts for the IT hub when on March 7, 2008, Air Deccan?s A-320 aircraft took off on a test flight between Bangalore?s HAL Airport and the upcoming international airport 40km away in Devanahalli. When, repeat when, the new swanky airport opens in a village north of Bangalore called Devanahalli, it is expected that the existing city-based one run by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) may shut doors to commerce.

While the Bengaluru International Airport, slated to open now on May 11, would manage the expanding air traffic to the country?s corporate hub, the transition was likely to be ?painful?, as confessed by Albert Brunner, the head of the project-implementing agency Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL).

The airport, one of the first public private partnership (PPP)-modeled projects in India, was hounded by controversies from almost its very conception over a decade ago. And just last week the launch date of the airport was rescheduled.

In a statement, the ministry said the AAI doubted the availability of ATC services on March 30. ? Delays in the construction of ATC facilities including the control tower, technical block, office accommodation of AAI personnel and issues like electricity supply, house-keeping, air-conditioning at the facilities were the reasons,? a ministry statement said.

After a review of the project, the ministry was told by its officials that the ATC facility would require eight weeks for familiarisation and training for the air traffic controllers. This was not possible prior to March 30, as the ATC tower was made available to it by BIAL six months later than scheduled. Meanwhile BIAL expressed disappointment at the delay and claimed that the reasons were beyond its control. Instead,it announced an event on March 28 to prove the airport?s readiness.

The airport is expecting around 500 aircraft movements a day and requires at least 80 air traffic controllers to launch full-scale services. But there are only around 25 such personnel at the airport?s disposal, which poses a threat to safety of passengers if full-scale services are launched. ?The airport can only start skeletal service with such numbers,? sources said.

Those close to the project have hinted that the blame for a delayed opening of the airport rests with the AAI. On conditions of anonymity, a BIAL board member said: ?If the main issue before the DGCA is that of the ATC, then it is the AAI?s problem. It was their duty to secure and man the ATC. On our part, the work is complete on the ground. We have demonstrated operational readiness at the trial flights held on March 7.? Brunner himself once told the media that the ATC was ?AAI?s responsibility?.

Many fear the controversy around the airport could damage the image of India as an investor-friendly nation. ?The wrong signals have already gone to people,? said a BIAL official.

Meanwhile, there are four PILs in Karnataka seeking the retention of the HAL airport, citing poor connectivity to Devanahalli and high user charges at the new airport. The expected date for the hearing is March 25 at the Karnataka high court. Prominent citizens, including representatives from Infosys, Bosch, Biocon among others have also made demands for better connectivity to the airport. Biocon founder Kiran Mazumdar Shaw said: ?There is a widespread feeling that the existing airport must be allowed to stay open until accessibility problem to the new one

is sorted out.”

Taking up the people?s cause, Infosys? board member, TV Mohandas Pai added: ?The public is angry that the roads to the airport are poor. The government should keep the old airport open for sometime and if there are any losses to any party, adequate compensation should be paid to them. Public interest should come first.? Brunner however said that the idea of keeping two airports open simultaneously, though ?tempting in the short term,? would be no great solution in the long term. ?It will be extremely expensive for airlines to split operations between two airports. We aim to make the new airport a consolidated hub for aviation in South India.?

As far as the project itself is concerned, it went through many uncertain phases. The initial project cost estimate of Rs 1,412 crore was revised twice to the current Rs 2,530 crore over a period of six years. The initial memorandum of understanding between the AAI and the Karnataka state was signed on May 3, 1999. In 2001, BIAL was chosen by the government to build and operate the airport. It was another two years before the concession agreement was finally signed between the state, the centre and BIAL.

The financial closure was announced in June 2005 and construction work began a month later. Brunner said that of the journey, negotiations of the concession deal were the most difficult. ?This was a first of its kind project in the country. Therefore the government was eager not to set any wrong precedence. They were very cautious,? he said.

The BIAL team is around 500 strong currently and is spread across various functions and at different levels. Overall, the project employs 3,000 workers and is spread across 3900 acres of land.

After being redesigned twice owing to revisions intraffic estimates, the new airport will now be equipped to handle 13 million passengers in the first phase, compared to passenger traffic of five million in 2005. BIAL held its first traffic forecast in 2000, and revised it in 2002 when it appointed consultants Lufthansa Consulting to do the needful. The existing HAL airport has meanwhile, crossed 10 million passengers, and lacks space to accommodate the growing air travel to the city. According to BIAL COO Marcel Hungerbuehler, ?International airlines have projected an increase of 26% in their operations from Bangalore, while the new schedules of domestic airlines estimate a growth of 30%.?

And as far as when the profits will roll in, Brunner doesn?t see that happening before six to seven years. During this time the airport is expected to expand at a cost of more than Rs 2,500, which would be spread over four years.

Now there is some more time to put things in place. Let?s hope the trial runs end in a smooth take off.