Terror hits business at BIA

Terror hits business at BIA
BY SAMIHA NETTIKKARA
BENGALURU







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‘ Customers requiring a commute to the airport have reduced ever ‘ since the Bengaluru blasts
Airport shuttle taxi operators and airline ticketing agents in Bengaluru, already bearing the brunt of a fall in air traffic due to the global recession, are in dire straits after the Mumbai terror attack.

Many travellers have reworked their leisure plans for the weekend. “Many cancelled their outstation trips to places such as Chikmagalur and Trichy after the Mumbai attacks. So, the number of customers have been lower than usual,” says Ullas Arjun, proprietor and managing partner of A2B Car Rentals. He relates an instance where a group of software engineers cancelled their trip as the relative of one of them died in the Mumbai attack.

The combined impact of recession, the terror attack and the ongoing protests inside the Bangkok International Airport has hit the aviation-related sector adversely. “The flights to the Mumbai and Bangkok sectors have been cancelled. Our business has been dull since September with a 3040 per cent drop in booking of both domestic and international airline tickets,” says Sunil Singh, owner of Priyadarshini Air Wing Pvt Ltd.

At Jet Airways, domestic passenger numbers have seen a marginal drop since the Mumbai crisis though international bookings are unaffected. A Jet Airways spokesperson says, “The medium term prospects will depend on how fast the current situation stabilises”.

Jet Airways had to cancel flights out of Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata to Bangkok. However, it is operating relief flights from these three gateway points in India to Utaphao in Thailand, to transport stranded passengers back to India and those requiring connecting international flights beyond Mumbai and Delhi.

Airport taxi operators of cosmopolitan Bengaluru that has been a prime transit point for inbound and outbound international airline traffic is paying a heavy toll because of the security crises. “Our customers requiring a commute to the airport have reduced ever since the Bengaluru blasts. In the last three days also, the number of airport shuttle commuters has dropped by 1-2 per cent,” says Kassim, Managing partner of K.K City Taxi. Though recession is a major factor, he attributes the dull airport commuter traffic to the Mumbai siege.

But cab services such as Meru Cabs refuse to be cowed down. “We are a utility service and function 24x7. Cab services become especially crucial in emergencies when one might not want to drive out alone or if the driver is inaccessible,” says Gavin Dabreo, VP, sales and marketing of Meru Cabs. Since the service caters to both city and airport sectors, they have registered no change in demand in either market.