Bangalore airport public trial run tomorrow

Bangalore airport public trial run tomorrow

Our Bureau

Bangalore, March 5 A special Kingfisher flight from Mumbai with invited passengers will be the first aircraft to do the full testing honours at the all-new Bengaluru International airport at Devanahalli at 10 a.m. on March 7. Sibling airline Deccan will follow it half an hour later, flying in from the HAL airport.

The first wet run or ‘public trial’ comes nearly three weeks before the airport officially opens on March 30; it is the last critical step in the operational readiness of the airport, which has to get its licence from the DGCA. The Civil Aviation Secretary, Mr Ashok Chawla, and the Director-General of Civil Aviation are expected to be at the airport on the same day. The Prime Minister is expected to inaugurate it on March 28. All systems such as security, check-in, baggage handling would be demonstrated in a culmination of nearly three months of dry, individual and integrated operations of the new airport. Three to four defence aircraft are also slated to take part in the test flights on Friday. The two flights fly back at 11.30 a.m. and 12 noon.

Airport company BIAL has been conducting the operational trials led by its Head of Start-up, Mr Werner Rohrer, from Unique Zurich airport, one of the promoters of the Bangalore airport.