Bangalore might soon get a second airport for commercial purposes. The current Kempegowda International Airport is located very far off the city and thus it is a pain for most of the people who have to travel from flights regularly. But as per a report from ThePrint, the silicon city of India might soon get another airport. The second airport would be none other than the city’s old Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) airport. At the moment, the HAL airport is only used by Military or for VIP and chartered flights. More on the story ahead.
Bangalore HAL Airport to Restart Soon if things Go Well
Things are not that simple though for restarting the HAL airport. The Karnataka Cabinet had last week decided that its concession agreement with the Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) would be extended by 30 more years for the Kempegowda International Airport if the firm revives the city’s old airport.
The issue is, the agreement which was signed between the Ministry of Civil Aviation and BIAL said that once the new international airport of the city is built, the old one has to stop its services. HAL airport thus stopped being a commercial airport back on March 30, 2008, when the Kempegowda International Airport initiated its services. Adding to this, there was another clause in the agreement signed between the Ministry of Civil Aviation and BIAL which said that any rival commercial airport should not be operated inside the 150 KM radius of the new airport for a 25 year period which means until May 2033.
So if the government wants to run the old airport too, then it means it will have to waive its old clause of disallowing any airport to function within the 150 KM radius of the Kempegowda International Airport.
There is no official confirmation on whether this is bound to happen or not. Even BIAL has not responded to the new offer of operating the old airport by the government. Only time will tell when and how things are going to proceed between the government and the BIAL.
