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Kempegowda International Airport is an
international airport An international airport is an airport with customs and border control facilities enabling passengers to travel between countries around the world. International airports are usually larger than domestic airports and they must feature longer ...
serving
Bangalore Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...
, the capital of
Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...
,
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
. Spread over , it is located about north of the city near the suburb of
Devanahalli Devanahalli, also called "Devandahalli", "Dyaavandalli", Devanadoddi, and Devanapura, is a town and Town Municipal Council in Bengaluru Rural district in the state of Karnataka in India. The town is located to the north-east of Bengaluru. Deva ...
. It is owned and operated by Bengaluru International Airport Limited (BIAL), a public–private consortium. The airport opened in May 2008 as an alternative to increased congestion at
HAL Airport HAL Airport is an airport that serves Bangalore, the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Located about 12 km east of the city centre, it has one runway and operates 24/7. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), a state-owned defence company ...
, the original primary commercial airport serving the city. It is named after
Kempe Gowda I Kempe Gowda I, locally venerated as Nadaprabhu Kempe Gowda, or commonly known as Kempe Gowda, was a chieftain under the Vijayanagara Empire in early-modern India. He is famous for founding the present-day southern Indian city of Bangalore. E ...
, the founder of Bangalore. Kempegowda International Airport became Karnataka's first fully
solar power Solar power is the conversion of energy from sunlight into electricity, either directly using photovoltaics (PV) or indirectly using concentrated solar power. Photovoltaic cells convert light into an electric current using the photovoltaic e ...
ed airport developed by CleanMax Solar. Kempegowda International Airport is the third-busiest airport by passenger traffic, air traffic movements and domestic and total cargo handled in India, behind the airports in
Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...
and
Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
, and is the 29th busiest airport in Asia. In the FY 2021–22, the airport handled around 16.2 million passengers and of cargo. The airport has a single passenger terminal that handles both domestic and international operations, and two runways, the second of which was commissioned on 6 December 2019. A second terminal (Phase-1) is completed and will begin operations for only domestic traffic in December 2022, and later international operations from 2023. Also, there is a cargo village and three cargo terminals. The airport serves as a hub for
AirAsia India AirAsia India is an Indian low-cost airline headquartered in Bangalore (Bengaluru), Karnataka. The airline was a joint venture between Tata Sons and AirAsia Bhd. Tata Sons currently holds 100% stake in the airline, after AirAsia Bhd sold its ...
, Alliance Air,
Go First Go First, founded as GoAir, is an Indian ultra-low-cost airline based in Mumbai, Maharashtra. It is owned by the Indian business conglomerate Wadia Group. In October 2017, it was the fifth largest airline in India with an 8.4% passenger mar ...
,
IndiGo Indigo is a deep color close to the color wheel blue (a primary color in the RGB color space), as well as to some variants of ultramarine, based on the ancient dye of the same name. The word "indigo" comes from the Latin word ''indicum'', m ...
, Star Air and DHL Aviation and is a focus city for
Air India Air India is the flag carrier airline of India, headquartered at New Delhi. It is owned by Talace Private Limited, a Special-Purpose Vehicle (SPV) of Tata Sons, after Air India Limited's former owner, the Government of India, completed the ...
and
SpiceJet SpiceJet is an Indian budget airline headquartered in Gurgaon, Haryana. It is the second largest airline in the country by number of domestic passengers carried, with a market share of 13.6% as of March 2019. The airline operates 630 daily fl ...
. The airport was recognised as the best airport (25 to 40 million passengers per annum) in
Asia-Pacific Asia-Pacific (APAC) is the part of the world near the western Pacific Ocean. The Asia-Pacific region varies in area depending on context, but it generally includes East Asia, Russian Far East, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia and Pacific Isla ...
in 2020 by
Airports Council International Airports Council International (ACI) is an organization of airport authorities aimed at unifying industry practices for airport standards. Established in 1991, its headquarters (ACI World) are based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, and its members ...
.


History


Planning (1991–2004)

The original airport serving Bangalore was
HAL Airport HAL Airport is an airport that serves Bangalore, the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Located about 12 km east of the city centre, it has one runway and operates 24/7. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), a state-owned defence company ...
, located from the city centre. It was the primary airport serving Bangalore city until 2008. Originally established in 1942 for military and defence purposes, HAL began domestic operations for the first time in the late 1970s. The unexpected popularity of the newly offered domestic flights encouraged rapid expansion of the airport. In the late 1990s, the first international flights started.
Air India Air India is the flag carrier airline of India, headquartered at New Delhi. It is owned by Talace Private Limited, a Special-Purpose Vehicle (SPV) of Tata Sons, after Air India Limited's former owner, the Government of India, completed the ...
was the first airline to offer international flights, flying to
Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
. In 2000, the first foreign airline started operations from HAL Airport, with
Royal Nepal Airlines Nepal Airlines Corporation ( ne, नेपाल वायुसेवा निगम, Nepāl Vāyusevā Nigam, Nepal Air Service Corporation), formerly known as Royal Nepal Airlines ( ne, शाही नेपाल वायुसेवा, ...
to
Kathmandu , pushpin_map = Nepal Bagmati Province#Nepal#Asia , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = Bagmati Prov ...
, followed by Lufthansa's A340 a year later from
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
. Several other major international carriers such as
British Airways British Airways (BA) is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a populati ...
and
Air France Air France (; formally ''Société Air France, S.A.''), stylised as AIRFRANCE, is the flag carrier of France headquartered in Tremblay-en-France. It is a subsidiary of the Air France–KLM Group and a founding member of the SkyTeam global air ...
were already serving the old airport by 2005. However, as Bangalore grew into the Silicon Valley of India and passenger traffic to the city rose, HAL Airport with a single runway and limited aircraft parking space was unable to cope with this increased traffic. In 2007 it saw a footfall of 8 million passengers, more than double its original capacity of 3.6 million. There was no room for expansion and the airport apron could only park six aircraft. In March 1991, former chairman of the National Airports Authority of India (NAAI) S. Ramanathan convened a panel to select the site for a new airport. The panel decided on
Devanahalli Devanahalli, also called "Devandahalli", "Dyaavandalli", Devanadoddi, and Devanapura, is a town and Town Municipal Council in Bengaluru Rural district in the state of Karnataka in India. The town is located to the north-east of Bengaluru. Deva ...
, a village about north of Bangalore. The
State Government A state government is the government that controls a subdivision of a country in a federal form of government, which shares political power with the federal or national government. A state government may have some level of political autonomy, or ...
made a proposal to build the airport with private assistance, which the
Union Government The Government of India ( ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...
approved in 1994. Finally in 1995, Airports Authority of India (AAI) and
Government of Karnataka The Government of Karnataka, abbreviated as, GoK, or simply Karnataka Government, is a democratically-elected state body with the governor as the ceremonial head to govern the Southwest Indian state of Karnataka. The governor who is appointed ...
decided to call for international consortia to own, build and operate the new Greenfield airport of the city. In December 1995, a consortium of
Tata Group The Tata Group () is an Indian multinational conglomerate headquartered in Mumbai. Established in 1868, it is India's largest conglomerate, with products and services in over 150 countries, and operations in 100 countries across six continents ...
,
Raytheon Raytheon Technologies Corporation is an American multinational aerospace and defense conglomerate headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. It is one of the largest aerospace and defense manufacturers in the world by revenue and market capitaliza ...
and
Singapore Changi Airport Singapore Changi Airport, commonly known as Changi Airport , is a major civilian international airport that serves Singapore, and is one of the largest transportation hubs in Asia. As one of the world's busiest airports by international passe ...
signed a memorandum of understanding with the State Government regarding participation in the project. In June 1998, however, the consortium announced it was pulling out of the project due to delays in government approval. These included disputes over the location of the airport and the fate of HAL Airport. In May 1999, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) and the Karnataka State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (KSIIDC) of the State Government signed a memorandum of understanding regarding the nature of the project. It would be a
public–private partnership A public–private partnership (PPP, 3P, or P3) is a long-term arrangement between a government and private sector institutions.Hodge, G. A and Greve, C. (2007), Public–Private Partnerships: An International Performance Review, Public Administ ...
, with AAI and KSIIDC having a 26% share and private companies having the remaining 74%. In January 2001, the State Government created the company Bengaluru International Airport Limited (BIAL) as a
special purpose entity A special-purpose entity (SPE; or, in Europe and India, special-purpose vehicle/SPV; or, in some cases in each EU jurisdiction, FVC, financial vehicle corporation) is a legal entity (usually a limited company of some type or, sometimes, a limited ...
and began searching for partners. By November, the project had attracted Unique Zürich Airport,
Siemens Project Ventures Siemens Financial Services (SFS) is a Division of Siemens. The company’s global headquarters is in Munich, Germany. SFS offers international financing solutions in the business-to-business area. Financial Services serves Siemens as well as other ...
and
Larsen & Toubro Larsen & Toubro Ltd, commonly known as L&T, is an Indian multinational conglomerate company, with business interests in engineering, construction, manufacturing, technology, information technology and financial services, headquartered in Mumba ...
. Construction was expected to begin in October 2002; however, governmental delays persisted. The
concession agreement A concession or concession agreement is a grant of rights, land or property by a government, local authority, corporation, individual or other legal entity. Public services such as water supply may be operated as a concession. In the case of a p ...
between the State Government, the Union Government and BIAL was signed in July 2004. In it, BIAL required the closure of HAL Airport. It took nearly a decade from the initial stage of land allocation and acquisition, to signing of shareholder agreements in 2002 and until start of construction. During the formation of legal framework, BIAL's main observation was the unprecedented growth that aviation industry faced.


Designing

BIAL, when the project was first designated, had anticipated traffic of approximately 5 million in the first year of operations in 2008. However,
HAL Airport HAL Airport is an airport that serves Bangalore, the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Located about 12 km east of the city centre, it has one runway and operates 24/7. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), a state-owned defence company ...
had handled over 8 million passengers by the time the construction of the new greenfield airport started. It took more than nine months to redesign the process along with gaining the necessary approvals, and when the approval for increased project was sanctioned, the construction was half done. The project was well on track despite the challenge and was expected to be ready by its initial given open date. The revised increased capacity project was constructed to cater to eleven million passengers per annum, up from the previous plan of 5 million passengers per annum. BIAL increased project had plans to build a terminal with eight passengers boarding bridges, one double arm aerobridge, nine remote bus gates and a runway measuring 4,000 metres with efficient taxiways. BIAL also planned to build an apron with 42 Code-C aircraft stands (with eight contact stands) as well as an air- and land-side road system. The estimated cost for the entire project was Rs 1,930 crore (approximately US$430 million).


Construction and opening (2005–2008)

Construction finally commenced on 2 July 2005. When a study predicted the airport would receive 6.7 million passengers in 2008, the airport was redesigned from its initial capacity of 4.5 million passengers to 11 million, with the terminal size expanded and the number of aircraft stands increased. The cost of the airport rose to . Construction was completed in 32 months, and BIAL set the launch date for 30 March 2008. However, due to delays in establishing
air traffic control Air traffic control (ATC) is a service provided by ground-based air traffic controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and through a given section of controlled airspace, and can provide advisory services to aircraft in non-controlled airs ...
services at the airport, the launch date was pushed to 11 May and finally 24 May 2008. As the opening date for the airport approached, public criticism arose, mainly directed toward the closure of HAL Airport. In March 2008, AAI employees conducted a massive strike against the closure of HAL Airport along with
Begumpet Airport Begumpet Airport in Hyderabad, also known as Hyderabad Old Airport, is a civil enclave located in Begumpet. The airport is home to the Rajiv Gandhi Aviation Academy (RGAA), the Telangana State Aviation Academy and the Begumpet Air Force Statio ...
in Hyderabad, fearing they would lose their jobs. The Bangalore City Connect Foundation, a group of citizens and businessmen, staged a rally in mid-May, claiming the new airport was too small for the latest demand projections. On 23 May, a hearing was held at the
Karnataka High Court Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...
over poor connectivity between the city and the airport. Ultimately, the State Government decided to go ahead with inaugurating the new airport and closing HAL Airport. The first flight to the airport, Air India Flight 609 from
Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
, was allowed to land the previous night as it would be continuing to Singapore shortly after midnight. The aircraft touched down at 10:40 pm on 23 May. The airport became the third
greenfield airport A greenfield airport is an aviation facility with greenfield project characteristics. The designation reflects certain environmental qualities (using previously undeveloped or empty greenfield land, for example) and commissioning, planning and cons ...
under a public–private partnership to open in India, after
Rajiv Gandhi International Airport Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) is an international airport that serves Hyderabad, the capital of the Indian state of Telangana. It is located in Shamshabad, about south of Hyderabad and it was opened on 23 March 2008 to replace ...
in Hyderabad and
Cochin International Airport Cochin International Airport is an International airport serving the city of Kochi, in the state of Kerala, India. Located at Nedumbassery, about northeast of the city centre, Cochin International Airport is first of its kind which is develo ...
.


Renaming and expansion (2009–present)

The original name of the airport was Bengaluru International Airport. In February 2009, the State Government sent a proposal to the Union Government to rename the airport after the founder of Bangalore,
Kempe Gowda I Kempe Gowda I, locally venerated as Nadaprabhu Kempe Gowda, or commonly known as Kempe Gowda, was a chieftain under the Vijayanagara Empire in early-modern India. He is famous for founding the present-day southern Indian city of Bangalore. E ...
. When no action was taken, the State Government passed a resolution for the name change in December 2011. The Union Government accepted the proposal in 2012 and formally approved it in July 2013. The airport was officially renamed Kempegowda International Airport on 14 December 2013 amid the inauguration of the expanded terminal building.
Kingfisher Airlines Kingfisher Airlines Limited was an airline group based in India. It was established in 2003 and started its commercial operations in 2005. Through its parent company United Breweries Group, it had a 50% stake in low-cost carrier Kingfisher R ...
once operated a hub and was one of the largest airlines at the airport. Following its collapse in October 2012, other airlines stepped in to fill the gap in domestic connectivity by adding more flights. In addition,
Air Pegasus Air Pegasus was an Indian regional airline headquartered in Bangalore and based at Kempegowda International Airport. The airline was a subsidiary of Decor Aviation, an aircraft ground-handling services company. It commenced operations on 12 ...
and
AirAsia India AirAsia India is an Indian low-cost airline headquartered in Bangalore (Bengaluru), Karnataka. The airline was a joint venture between Tata Sons and AirAsia Bhd. Tata Sons currently holds 100% stake in the airline, after AirAsia Bhd sold its ...
launched hub operations at the airport in 2014. The first phase of expansion was launched in June 2011 and finished in December 2013. The project doubled the size of the passenger terminal to , involving the construction of additional facilities for check-in, immigration, security and baggage reclaim. One domestic gate and three international gates were added as well. A large, sweeping roof connects the original building with the expanded areas. The expanded terminal, dubbed "Terminal 1A", has raised the annual passenger capacity of the airport to 25 million. In September 2022,
Qantas Qantas Airways Limited ( ) is the flag carrier of Australia and the country's largest airline by fleet size, international flights, and international destinations. It is the world's third-oldest airline still in operation, having been founded ...
began flying to
Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
with Airbus A330s. This is the first nonstop service between Bangalore and Australia. The following month,
Emirates Emirates may refer to: * United Arab Emirates, a Middle Eastern country * Emirate, any territory ruled by an emir ** Gulf emirates, emirates located on the Persian Gulf ** Emirates of the United Arab Emirates, the individual emirates * The Emirat ...
introduced the
Airbus A380 The Airbus A380 is a large wide-body airliner that was developed and produced by Airbus. It is the world's largest passenger airliner and only full-length double-deck jet airliner. Airbus studies started in 1988, and the project was annou ...
, the world's largest passenger plane, on one of its flights to Dubai, marking Bangalore's first A380 service.
Air India Air India is the flag carrier airline of India, headquartered at New Delhi. It is owned by Talace Private Limited, a Special-Purpose Vehicle (SPV) of Tata Sons, after Air India Limited's former owner, the Government of India, completed the ...
started a scheduled flight to
San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
aboard Boeing 777 aircraft in December.


Ownership

The airport is owned and operated by Bengaluru International Airport Limited (BIAL), a
public limited company A public limited company (legally abbreviated to PLC or plc) is a type of public company under United Kingdom company law, some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth jurisdictions, and the Republic of Ireland. It is a limited liability company ...
. The Government of India has granted BIAL the right to operate the airport for 30 years, with the option to continue for another 30 years. The company is a public–private consortium venture. GVK initially owned 43% of the shares in Bangalore Airport. In 2016, GVK decided to divest its 33% share of in BIAL to
Fairfax Financial Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited is a Canadian financial holding company based in Toronto, Ontario, which is engaged in property, casualty, insurance and reinsurance, investment management, and insurance claims management. The company oper ...
for ₹2149 cr. In March 2017, GVK confirmed having done so. Finally, in January 2018, GVK decided to sell the remaining 10% shares to Fairfax Financial for ₹1,290 crore and exit Bangalore Airport completely. 26% is held by government entities Karnataka State Industrial Investment and Development Corporation (13%) and Airports Authority of India (13%), and 74% is held by private companies
Fairfax Financial Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited is a Canadian financial holding company based in Toronto, Ontario, which is engaged in property, casualty, insurance and reinsurance, investment management, and insurance claims management. The company oper ...
(54%) and
Siemens Project Ventures Siemens Financial Services (SFS) is a Division of Siemens. The company’s global headquarters is in Munich, Germany. SFS offers international financing solutions in the business-to-business area. Financial Services serves Siemens as well as other ...
(20%). In March 2021 the Airports Authority of India announced their plans to sell their 13% stake in order to raise funds. Between FY 2022–2025, the Government aims to raise as much as ₹20,782 crore through aviation. The process will start with the selling of stakes of Bangalore Airport followed by Hyderabad, Mumbai and Delhi.


Facilities


Runways

Kempegowda International Airport has two
runways According to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and takeoff of aircraft". Runways may be a man-made surface (often asphalt, concrete, o ...
in use. Four years after it was laid, the first runway (now designated 09L/27R) was entirely resurfaced because of a serious decline in quality. From 11 March to 3 April 2012, it was closed daily between 10:30 am and 5:30 pm. As a result, BIAL accused construction company
Larsen & Toubro Larsen & Toubro Ltd, commonly known as L&T, is an Indian multinational conglomerate company, with business interests in engineering, construction, manufacturing, technology, information technology and financial services, headquartered in Mumba ...
of building the runway poorly. South of runway 09L/27R are a full-length parallel taxiway and the
apron An apron is a garment that is worn over other clothing to cover the front of the body. The word comes from old French ''napron'' meaning a small piece of cloth, however over time "a napron" became "an apron", through a linguistics process cal ...
, which extends from the Blue Dart/DHL terminal to the passenger terminal. The construction of the second runway at the airport is now complete, and was officially in use from 6 December 2019, when an IndiGo airlines flight (6E 466) to Hyderabad took off from runway 09R. The runway will cater to all types of aircraft including Code-F aircraft like
Airbus A380 The Airbus A380 is a large wide-body airliner that was developed and produced by Airbus. It is the world's largest passenger airliner and only full-length double-deck jet airliner. Airbus studies started in 1988, and the project was annou ...
and
Boeing 747-8 The Boeing 747-8 is a wide-body airliner formerly developed by Boeing Commercial Airplanes, and the largest variant of the 747. After introducing the 747-400, Boeing considered larger 747 versions as alternatives to the proposed double-deck Ai ...
and will be equipped with CAT IIIB ILS. The runway also features an associated parallel taxiway and two cross-field taxiways on the east linking the new runway to the existing north runway and the aprons at Terminal 1 and the upcoming Terminal 2. The first runway (09L/27R) was also upgraded as part of the expansion work. The old runway (Runway 09L/27R) was closed from 22 June 2020 for nine months for rehabilitation and strengthening. The runway was opened for service again on 31 March 2021 and put into service with the south runway, making KIA the first airport in South India to have parallel runway operations.


Terminals


Terminal 1

A single integrated passenger terminal accommodates both domestic and international operations. It covers and can handle 20 million passengers annually. Check-in and baggage reclaim areas are situated on the lower floor, while departure gates are located on the first floor. Gates 1, 2, 12–18, 28–30 on the first floor are used for domestic departures, gates 31–42 on the first floor are used for international departures, gates 3–9 and gates 19–25 form the Western and Eastern bus gates respectively. Gate 41–42 is equipped to serve the world's largest passenger aircraft, the
Airbus A380 The Airbus A380 is a large wide-body airliner that was developed and produced by Airbus. It is the world's largest passenger airliner and only full-length double-deck jet airliner. Airbus studies started in 1988, and the project was annou ...
. Lounges are provided by Travel Food Services, which also operates a transit hotel in the terminal. For VIPs there is a separate lounge. There are two lounges in Terminal 1, the 080 Domestic and the 080 International lounges. Named "080" after the trunk dial code of the city of Bengaluru, the lounges aim to pay an ode to the Garden City of Bengaluru with local artistry, culture-inspired interiors and botanical elements, each zone in the lounge is carefully crafted to bring alive the stories of the city it’s inspired by. Both the lounges are operated by Travel Food Services.


Terminal 2

The airport's second terminal, designed as a tribute to the "Garden City" of Bengaluru by
Skidmore, Owings & Merrill Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) is an American architectural, urban planning and engineering firm. It was founded in 1936 by Louis Skidmore and Nathaniel A. Owings, Nathaniel Owings in Chicago, Illinois. In 1939, they were joined by engineer Jo ...
and constructed by
Larsen & Toubro Larsen & Toubro Ltd, commonly known as L&T, is an Indian multinational conglomerate company, with business interests in engineering, construction, manufacturing, technology, information technology and financial services, headquartered in Mumba ...
was inaugurated on 11 November 2022, by Prime Minister
Narendra Modi Narendra Damodardas Modi (; born 17 September 1950) is an Indian politician serving as the 14th and current Prime Minister of India since 2014. Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014 and is the Member of Parliament from ...
. The first phase of terminal 2, built at a cost of around ₹ 5,000 crore, with a size of 255,000 sq.m., will help augment the capacity of the airport by an additional 25 million passengers per annum. The second phase of terminal 2 is planned and is expected to provide an additional capacity of 20 million passengers per annum, thereby increasing the overall capacity of the terminal to over 45 million passengers per annum. Construction of the first phase of terminal 2 commenced in 2018, but the project faced delays owing to the
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
pandemic. The arrivals area of terminal 2 is situated on the ground floor, while departures are planned on the first floor. The first phase of terminal 2 features 95 check-in counters, 17 security check lanes, 9 baggage claim belts, 34 conventional and 6 electronic immigration gates. With provisions for tarmac gates and jet bridge gates, including Code-F gates to handle larger aircraft like the
Airbus A380 The Airbus A380 is a large wide-body airliner that was developed and produced by Airbus. It is the world's largest passenger airliner and only full-length double-deck jet airliner. Airbus studies started in 1988, and the project was annou ...
and the
Boeing 747-8 The Boeing 747-8 is a wide-body airliner formerly developed by Boeing Commercial Airplanes, and the largest variant of the 747. After introducing the 747-400, Boeing considered larger 747 versions as alternatives to the proposed double-deck Ai ...
, the first phase of terminal 2 will initially start with domestic operations in December 2022. The terminal will eventually handle both domestic and international operations in the early half of 2023. Technology & Sustainability were some of the key design goals of Terminal 2, with the terminal receiving a LEED Platinum certification from the
U.S. Green Building Council The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), co-founded by Mike Italiano, David Gottfried and Rick Fedrizzi in 1993, is a private 501(c)3, membership-based non-profit organization that promotes sustainability in building design, construction, and op ...
.


Aviation fuel services

The airport has a fuel farm, spread over west of the cargo village and passenger terminal. It was built by IndianOil SkyTanking Ltd (IOSL) but is shared by multiple oil companies. In October 2008,
Indian Oil Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL; d/b/a IndianOil) is a central public sector undertaking under the ownership of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Government of India. It is headquartered in New Delhi. It is a public sector under ...
commissioned a fuel
pipeline Pipeline may refer to: Electronics, computers and computing * Pipeline (computing), a chain of data-processing stages or a CPU optimization found on ** Instruction pipelining, a technique for implementing instruction-level parallelism within a s ...
between its storage terminal in Devanagonthi and Kempegowda Airport. Previously, jet fuel had to be transported to the airport by
tank truck A tank truck, gas truck, fuel truck, or tanker truck (American English) or tanker (British English) is a motor vehicle designed to carry liquids or gases on roads. The largest such vehicles are similar to railroad tank cars, which are also des ...
s, which created traffic and pollution problems.


Cargo facilities

Kempegowda Airport has three cargo terminals. One is operated by AISATS (Air India Singapore Airport Terminal Services) Ltd and has a capacity for of cargo; it includes a facility for storing
pharmaceuticals A medication (also called medicament, medicine, pharmaceutical drug, medicinal drug or simply drug) is a drug used to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent disease. Drug therapy (pharmacotherapy) is an important part of the medical field and rel ...
. DHL and
Blue Dart Aviation Blue Dart Aviation is a cargo airline based in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. It operates with its main base as Chennai International Airport. It serves 7 Indian metro cities. German courier company Deutsche Post owns a 70% stake in the airline th ...
jointly operate a terminal. The third cargo terminal is operated by Menzies Aviation Bobba (Bangalore) Pvt. Ltd, a joint venture between
Menzies Aviation John Menzies plc ( , ) is the holding company of Menzies Aviation plc, an aviation services business providing ground handling, cargo handling, cargo forwarding and into-plane (ITP) fuelling, based in Edinburgh, Scotland. History The compa ...
and Bobba Group (a sales agency for
Lufthansa Cargo Lufthansa Cargo AG is a German cargo airline and a wholly owned subsidiary of Lufthansa. It operates worldwide air freight and logistics services and is headquartered at Frankfurt Airport, the main hub of Lufthansa. Besides operating dedicated ...
). The 170,000 sq ft. cargo terminal began operations in May 2008.The terminal has the capacity to handle tons of cargo annually. BIAL inaugurated a separate cargo village in December 2008. The village is spread over and includes office space, conference rooms, a cafeteria for staff and parking space for nearly 80 trucks. It did not open for occupation until 2010 and initially suffered low occupancy, which some cargo agents attributed to the opening delay, high rent and limited infrastructure.


Other facilities


IndiGo Ifly Training Academy

On 4 September 2019,
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
's leading airline,
IndiGo Indigo is a deep color close to the color wheel blue (a primary color in the RGB color space), as well as to some variants of ultramarine, based on the ancient dye of the same name. The word "indigo" comes from the Latin word ''indicum'', m ...
announced that it will extend its learning academy, ifly to Bangalore, its 2nd such facility in India. The facility will be built in the Airport campus. Starting 6 September 2019, ifly facilitated training to the airline employees. With over 27,000 employees, there are over 100 instructors in the academy, who conducts workshops on regular basis. The Ifly learning academy of IndiGo Airlines facilitates special trainings throughout the year to its employees including required skills for job performance, customer services, ramp and marshalling training, safety and emergency procedures, departure control system, communication and leadership training and e-learning to name the few.


IndiGo Maintenance Repair and Overhaul Facility

IndiGo Indigo is a deep color close to the color wheel blue (a primary color in the RGB color space), as well as to some variants of ultramarine, based on the ancient dye of the same name. The word "indigo" comes from the Latin word ''indicum'', m ...
has its second facility to service their fleet of predominantly
Airbus Airbus SE (; ; ; ) is a European Multinational corporation, multinational aerospace corporation. Airbus designs, manufactures and sells civil and military aerospace manufacturer, aerospace products worldwide and manufactures aircraft througho ...
aircraft. The facility, which has a volume of around 218,000 ft.², has capacity for narrow-body aircraft and houses a single bay catering for widebody aircraft. The MRO is completed and is operational since November 2022.


Central Kitchen

Food services provider SATS proposed to setup their first central kitchen, a 14,000sqm facility with an investment of Rs. 210 crore to cater to the demand in the region. SATS already has a long standing partnership with the airport through its aviation catering associate Taj SATS and ground handling associate AISATS. The facility will be located at the Kempegowda International Airport and is expected to be operational in the year 2022.


Future plans

The second phase of expansion is underway, which encompasses the construction of a second runway and a passenger terminal in two phases. When fully completed, Kempegowda International Airport will be able to handle 55 million passengers per year. The estimated project received clearance from the
Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) is an Indian government ministry. This ministry is headed by Secretary Rank senior most IAS officer. The ministry portfolio is currently held by Bhupender Yadav, Union Minister ...
(MoEFCC) in September 2014. Ground work on the second runway began in February 2016 and the runway opened in December 2019. Located south of the original terminal, it is parallel to runway 09/27 and measures , wider than the original runway so it can accommodate larger aircraft. The new runway is also CAT III certified, allowing for landings in fog and other low visibility conditions. A second terminal is being constructed to meet the airport's expected growth, and it will be constructed in two phases. This terminal has been designed by
Skidmore, Owings & Merrill Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) is an American architectural, urban planning and engineering firm. It was founded in 1936 by Louis Skidmore and Nathaniel A. Owings, Nathaniel Owings in Chicago, Illinois. In 1939, they were joined by engineer Jo ...
, and the construction contract has been awarded to
Larsen & Toubro Larsen & Toubro Ltd, commonly known as L&T, is an Indian multinational conglomerate company, with business interests in engineering, construction, manufacturing, technology, information technology and financial services, headquartered in Mumba ...
. In the first phase, the terminal will cater to 25 million passengers annually, and in the second phase, it will cater another 20 million passengers annually. Terminal 2 is estimated to cost . Due to the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
, which caused a shortage of manpower and resulted in delays of work, Terminal 2 is now completed and was inaugurated in November 2022, with operations starting in December 2022. International flights will be commenced only after the terminal's second phase gets completed. A third runway, north of the current runway is being planned to cater to the growth of air traffic in the airport which will be situated 1500 meters north of the current runway. Dubbed as the "New North Parallel Runway", the officials hope to ease air traffic congestion with the third runway. A third passenger terminal is also planned, and it is expected to begin construction by 2034. It is expected be completed by late 2030s.


Statistics


Airlines and destinations


Passenger


Cargo


Connectivity


Road

Kempegowda Airport is connected to the city of Bangalore by
National Highway 44 The following highways are numbered 44. Australia * Great Western Highway, Parramatta Road (Sydney) * Captain Cook Highway - Queensland State Route 44 (Regional) * Greensborough Highway Canada * Alberta Highway 44 * Manitoba Highway 44 * On ...
(NH 44). In January 2014, a six-lane flyover was completed over NH 44 between
Hebbal Hebbal may refer to several places in Karnataka, India: * Hebbal, Bangalore, a neighborhood in Bangalore ** Hebbal Lake, Bangalore ** Hebbal-Kittayya inscription ** Hebbal (Vidhana Sabha constituency) ** University of Agricultural Sciences, Banga ...
and the airport, helping to reduce travel time to and from the city. Two alternative routes are under construction and will be completed by March 2017, one through Thanisandra and the other through Hennur. The airport car park is located at ground level and can hold 2,000 vehicles. The airport is served by several taxi and rental car companies. In addition, ride-sharing companies
Ola Cabs Ola Cabs (stylized as OLΛ) is an Indian multinational ridesharing company, headquartered in Bangalore. It also operates in other business verticals including financial services and cloud kitchens. A variety of venture capitalists including ...
and
Uber Uber Technologies, Inc. (Uber), based in San Francisco, provides mobility as a service, ride-hailing (allowing users to book a car and driver to transport them in a way similar to a taxi), food delivery (Uber Eats and Postmates), packa ...
have their own pick-up zones outside the terminal. The
Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation - (BMTC) is a state-owned public road transport corporation in the Indian city of Bengaluru. It is wholly owned by the Government of Karnataka. It serves the Bengaluru Metropolitan Region. Histor ...
(BMTC) provides bus transportation to major parts of the city through the ''Vayu Vajra'' (
Kannada Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...
for "Diamond in the Air") service. It is operated using a fleet of
Volvo B7RLE The Volvo B7RLE is a low-entry single-deck bus chassis manufactured by Volvo. It was superseded by the Volvo B8RLE in 2013. Specifications The Volvo B7RLE is similar to its predecessor, the B10BLE. In essence the B7RLE is the front section of t ...
buses. In addition, the
Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation - (Karnataka SRTC), is a state-owned public road transport corporation in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is wholly owned by the Government of Karnataka. It serves routes to towns and cities in ...
(KSRTC) operates a nonstop bus service called "Flybus" between Kempegowda Airport and
Mysore Mysore (), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern part of the state of Karnataka, India. Mysore city is geographically located between 12° 18′ 26″ north latitude and 76° 38′ 59″ east longitude. It is located at an altitude of ...
, as well as a route to
Manipal Manipal is a suburb and university town within Udupi, in coastal Karnataka, India. Manipal is located five kilometres away from the centre of Udupi City, in Udupi District, Karnataka (state) in south western India. It is administered by the Udup ...
via
Mangalore Mangalore (), officially known as Mangaluru, is a major port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghats about west of Bangalore, the state capital, 20 km north of Karnataka–Ker ...
.


Rail

A halt at the KIA boundary commenced operations in January 2021. The train halt is connected to the airport terminal via short five-minute shuttle busses. Every day five trains from the city towards
Devanahalli Devanahalli, also called "Devandahalli", "Dyaavandalli", Devanadoddi, and Devanapura, is a town and Town Municipal Council in Bengaluru Rural district in the state of Karnataka in India. The town is located to the north-east of Bengaluru. Deva ...
stop at the KIA halt and five trains head back. Future plans include
electrification Electrification is the process of powering by electricity and, in many contexts, the introduction of such power by changing over from an earlier power source. The broad meaning of the term, such as in the history of technology, economic histor ...
of the route to introduce comfortable MEMU trains to the airport. MEMU trains from
Mysore Mysore (), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern part of the state of Karnataka, India. Mysore city is geographically located between 12° 18′ 26″ north latitude and 76° 38′ 59″ east longitude. It is located at an altitude of ...
that terminate at
Yelahanka Yelahanka is now a suburb of Bangalore in the state of Karnataka and one of the zones of BBMP. It is the oldest part of present Municipal Bengaluru (Bangalore) city and is in the north of the city. It is Nadaprabhu Kempegowda I, of the Yelaha ...
could be extended up to Devanahalli via the KIA halt station, benefitting airport-bound passengers from Mysore, Channapatna, Ramanagaram and Bidadi.


Metro

The plan to build a metro link between Bangalore and the airport with two stations at the airport was revived in 2020 and is now under construction. In January 2019, Karnataka Government approved the Bangalore Airport Metro line. The project which is envisioned to link
Bangalore City Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most p ...
with the airport is under Phase 2B of
Namma Metro Namma Metro ("Our Metro" in Kannada), also known as Bengaluru Metro, is a rapid transit system serving the city of Bengaluru, India. Upon its inauguration, it became the first underground metro system in South India. Namma Metro has a mix of u ...
, and is 37 km long. The blue line also known as Line-5 (KR Puram-Hebbal-Kempegowda International Airport) will have 17 stations as an extension of Line-5 (ORR Line) via KR Puram, Nagawara, Hebbal And Yelahanka. The project is estimated to be completed by December 2024. There are two metro stops being built in the airport campus, one near the upcoming
Airport City An airport city is the “inside the fence” airport area of a large airport, including the airport (terminals, apron, and runways) and on-airport businesses such as air cargo, logistics, offices, retail, and hotels. The airport city is at the ...
, which will be partly elevated and the other one in the Multi Modal Transport Hub opposite the upcoming Terminal 2. The cost of building these two stations is estimated to be Rs 800 crore. The total cost of the project is expected to be Rs14,788 Crores. To ensure last-mile connectivity for passengers, a service road will be provided around the Metro Stations in the Airport premises, for integration with BMTC buses. Plans are to build a 6m wide road.


High Speed Rail Link (HSRL)

In August 2021,
Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...
Chief Minister A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union terri ...
Basavaraj Bommai Basavaraj Somappa Bommai (born 28 January 1960) is an Indian politician and engineer who is the current and 23rd Chief Minister of Karnataka. He is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party. He is a Member of the Legislative Assembly in the le ...
declared plans of building a High Speed Rail Link (HSRL) connecting the airport and the city. If constructed, the airport will be connected by three different railway lines: the
Metro Metro, short for metropolitan, may refer to: Geography * Metro (city), a city in Indonesia * A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center Public transport * Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urba ...
, Suburban rail and High-speed rail, making it a distinctive airport connected with all three (modes of transportation). This is not the first time this is planned. Plans to build an HSRL was earlier planned in 2001 and was revived again in 2013, but was shelved both times due to issues in land acquisition and high costs involved. More recently, the plan has been revived, as the Chief Minister believes that this has been their dream and they are going to get it done as no international airport in the world has got all three (modes of transportation).


See also

*
List of airports in India This list of airports in India includes existing and former commercial & private airports, flying schools, certain defence airstrips, etc. As per AAI data from November 2016, the following are being targeted for the scheduled commercial flight ...
*
List of airports in Karnataka Below is the list of airports in Karnataka. Map References {{Airports in India * Airports Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 Novem ...
*
List of busiest airports in India India's busiest airports is the list of top fifty busiest airports of over a hundred commercially operational airports in the country. Data also includes statistics for total aircraft movements and total cargo movements. The tables below contain ...


References


External links

*
Vayu Vajra Bus Timings
to and from BIAL {{Airports in India Airports in Bangalore Airports in Karnataka 2008 establishments in India Airports established in 2008 Fairfax Financial