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HAL Airport

Coordinates: 12°57′0″N 77°40′6″E / 12.95000°N 77.66833°E / 12.95000; 77.66833
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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Sunnya343 (talk | contribs) at 17:19, 26 July 2021 (→History: passenger count for 1980-'81). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

For other uses, see HAL (disambiguation).

HAL Airport
Summary
Airport typeMilitary
Operator
LocationBangalore, Karnataka, India
Elevation AMSL2,912 ft / 888 m
Coordinates12°57′0″N 77°40′6″E / 12.95000°N 77.66833°E / 12.95000; 77.66833
Map
VOBG is located in Bengaluru
VOBG
VOBG
VOBG is located in Karnataka
VOBG
VOBG
VOBG is located in India
VOBG
VOBG
Map
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
09/27 10,850 3,307 Asphalt

HAL Airport (IATA: none, ICAO: VOBG) is an airport located in Bangalore, Karnataka, India. Due to its location in the heart of the city, it used to serve as a hub for general, business and VIP aviation, as well as being used by the Indian Air Force as a cargo and logistics base, and as a testing facility by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited. It served as the city's main domestic and international airport until 24 May 2008, when it was replaced by the new, much larger Kempegowda International Airport in Devanahalli. There have since been repeated attempts to restart commercial service at the airport, but as of 2015 was being used only for non-scheduled, military cargo/logistics, VIP aircraft movements, and as a diversion alternative to Kempegowda International Airport in case of emergencies.

History

The passenger terminal viewed in 2006

During World War II, Indian magnate Walchand Hirachand sought to build and repair planes in India, which at the time did not have any aircraft industry of its own. He found a partner in American businessman William Pawley, and the two received authorization from the British War Cabinet to set up a factory. Meanwhile, the princely state of Mysore offered 200 acres in Bangalore for the construction of an airfield.[1] Hirachand, his colleagues, and the Mysore government jointly formed a company called Hindustan Aircraft Limited (the original name of present-day Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, or HAL) and in December 1940 laid the cornerstone of the facility, which began operations just one month later.[1][2] The colonial government joined the venture in 1941. As fears of Japanese ambitions rose following the attack on Pearl Harbor, the British Raj took over HAL in April 1942, thereby requisitioning the airfield as well. It then allowed the US Tenth Air Force to repair its aircraft in Bangalore, and the following year the Americans began running the factory.[1] With the US Air Force in charge, the facility focused on fixing and overhauling aircraft and engines, as well as producing drop tanks. Workers tended to a wide range of planes, including Catalinas and C-47 Dakotas.[1][3] Upon the war's conclusion, the Indian government reassumed control of the airport.[2]

On the civilian front, Bangalore had commercial air service as early as 1946, when Deccan Airways commenced flights to Hyderabad.[4] Four years later, Airways (India) and Air India were also flying to the airport, linking it to a handful of destinations in South India.[5] The national government then combined all domestic carriers into a single company called Indian Airlines, which was providing nonstop service from Bangalore to six cities by 1970. Additionally, jet aircraft had reached the airport by this time, with Caravelles performing routes to Hyderabad and Bombay.[6] During the 1980-1981 fiscal year, the HAL airport served approximately 550,000 passengers.[4] Before the end of the decade, Bangalore had acquired one more airline, Vayudoot, which operated flights within Karnataka as well as to neighbouring Tamil Nadu. Meanwhile, Indian Airlines' network from the city had expanded to 13 destinations, from Delhi in the north to Trivandrum in the south.[7]

During the 1990s, the number of passengers the airport was handling began to rise at a quick rate. While 1,000 travellers were passing through the terminal daily in 1991, more than six times that number were doing so by 1997.[8] Additionally, Air India delivered Bangalore its first international destination, Singapore, in January 1995.[9][10] The Airports Authority of India (AAI) started enhancing the airport's facilities toward the end of the decade, constructing an instrument landing system for the runway and another terminal.[11] The arrivals section of the two-storey building could serve 700 domestic and 300 international passengers at a time, while the departures area had a capacity for 300 international travellers. At the inauguration ceremony in January 1999, then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee associated Bangalore's rising global stature and bustling economy with the need for the new terminal. At the same time, he observed that the city's accelerated pace of growth meant that the expansion would only help in the short-term, so government leaders needed to press forward with plans to build a new airport.[12]

The year 2000 saw the Bangalore airport land its first foreign carrier, Royal Nepal Airlines, which initiated a route to Kathmandu.[13][14] One year later, a Lufthansa Airbus A340 touched down from Frankfurt, Germany, signalling the first time the South Indian metropolis had a direct link to Europe.[15][16]

Civilian traffic continued to increase as the decade progressed. Air Deccan established its first base at the HAL airport upon starting operations in 2003.[17] Two years later, Bangalore ranked third on the list of the busiest airports in India with respect to domestic operations, and more international travellers were arriving as well.[14] Carriers like British Airways and Air France, which began service to the city in the same week, contributed to this growth.[18][19] Meanwhile, the signing of a concession agreement by the state and national governments and a private company called Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) enabled construction to start on another much larger airport, situated 30 km from the downtown area of the city in the suburb of Devanahalli.[20][21][22] The contract barred commercial flights from operating at the HAL airport for 25 years after the new airport opened, as BIAL and the Karnataka government believed that keeping both airports open would hamper the new facility's profitability.[23][24]

When comparing January 2006 to the same month one year prior, domestic and international passenger counts had gone up roughly 48% and 29%, respectively. Airport officials eventually had to request airlines not to introduce flights during the busiest hours.[25] In 2006, HAL complained that the airport's booming civilian operations were hindering the company's activities, which ranged from flying sorties to evaluating aircraft prototypes. Between April 2005 and March 2006, the civil enclave had processed roughly 1.6 times its capacity of 3.5 million travellers per year.[26][27]

The AAI responded to the problem with various infrastructure upgrades. For instance, it collaborated with HAL to construct additional parking stands.[26] By late 2006, the airports authority had finished enlarging the two terminals, thereby raising the annual passenger capacity by 800,000.[28][29] The statistics continued to climb in the meantime, with over 10 million people passing through the HAL airport in the 2007-2008 fiscal year.[30]

Passenger Numbers at the HAL Airport
Period (April-March) Count (millions) Percent Change Ref.
2001-'02 2.28 - [31]
2002-'03 3.03 +33.0 [31]
2003-'04 3.18 +5.11 [32][33]
2004-'05 4.11 +29.3 [32][33]
2005-'06 5.65 +37.5 [27]
2006-'07 8.12 +43.7 [27]
2007-'08 10.1 +24.6 [30]

Transfer of civilian operations

As work on the new airport neared its end, a controversy grew in the city regarding the stipulation that the HAL airport's civil enclave would soon need to cease operations. Some protestors alleged that the Devanahalli airport was ill-equipped to satisfy Bangalore's burgeoning need for air travel on its own, while others claimed that the authorities were going to eliminate a potential competitor to BIAL.[34][35] Additionally, 20,000 AAI workers across India walked off their jobs in March 2008 over the shutting of the civil enclaves in Bangalore and Hyderabad; they did not end their strike until the union government affirmed that the airports would remain operational for other purposes.[36][37] The Karnataka government suggested to BIAL that the HAL airport could continue servicing short-haul flights, but the company would not change its stance.[38]

On 23 May 2008, the high court of the state rejected a petition by a local organisation to delay the new airport's opening, and the final passenger and revenue cargo flights departed the HAL airport that night.[39][40] In light of the protests, however, the court offered the central government and BIAL 12 weeks to determine the future of the civil enclave.[38] Nevertheless, BIAL still sought to adhere to the 2004 agreement, and New Delhi concurred after assessing the Devanahalli airport's capabilities.[34]

Since then, there have been several attempts to reinstate commercial air service at HAL Airport. In January 2015, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar appealed to the Civil Aviation Minister to reopen HAL Airport, citing its loss of revenue and its convenient location within Bangalore.[41] However, the Indian Government has repeatedly denied these requests in accordance with its 150 km policy.

Facilities and operations

HAL Airport has one runway, which is oriented to 90/270 degrees and measures 3,306 by 61 metres. It is equipped with a category I instrument landing system and can cater to aircraft as large as the Boeing 747. The airfield, which remains operational 24/7, also contains 30 parking spots and two helipads.[42]

The airport accommodates a wide array of non-scheduled civilian operations, including VIP aircraft movements, charter flights, and air ambulances.[43][44][45] However, it does not generally function as a diversion alternative to Kempegowda International Airport in case of emergencies; the AAI no longer maintains the terminal buildings to handle passengers, and no airline flight may touch down at the airfield per the concession agreement.[43][46] As of 2017, the civil aviation ministry seeks to permit airlines to divert to the HAL airport, as it does not believe the contract with BIAL applies to such contingencies.[46] In regards to facilities available for civilian use, the airport offers a VIP lounge, air-freight warehouse, and maintenance hangar.[42] The closed civil enclave possessed two terminals, one for domestic flights and the other for international services.[28][47]

With respect to defence activities, HAL and the Indian military perform test flights from the airfield.[43]

Incidents and accidents

  • On 15 September 1951, an Air India Douglas C-47 Dakota departed with the autopilot switched on, causing the plane to crash. Of the 27 people on board, one crew member died in the accident.[48]
  • On 21 October 1963, a Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar belonging to the Indian Air Force collided with trees as it was preparing to land, killing eight of the 21 people aboard.[49]
  • 14 February 1990, Indian Airlines Flight 605, an Airbus A320, crashed on final approach with 92 fatalities.[50]
  • 28 December 1996, a Blue Dart Aviation Boeing 737 made a heavy, off-center landing causing damage to the aircraft and runway.[51]
  • 12 February 2004, a helicopter being used by the HAL Rotary Wing Academy crashed, injuring both occupants.[52]
  • 26 October 2005, an Indian Air Force MiG-21 crashed killing the pilot.[53]
  • 11 March 2006, a Deccan ATR 72, with 40 passengers and 4 crew made a heavy landing. There were no major injuries but the aircraft was written off.[54][55]
  • 4 May 2006, a Transmile Air Services 727-2F2F suffered damage to the left wing fuel tank.[56]
  • 21 August 2006, a Kiran Mark II trainer aircraft crashed after the wheels failed.[57]
  • 6 June 2007, Sri Lankan Cargo Antonov An-12 lost engine power on runway.[58]
  • 6 March 2009, A NAL Saras aircraft prototype that had taken off from HAL Airport crashed in a field near Bidadi, killing the three man crew of test pilots.[59]
  • 1 February 2019, An Indian Air Force Mirage 2000 modified by HAL on an acceptance flight crashed 500 metres outside the airport perimeter wall after an unsuccessful touch and go on runway 09, both pilots ejected but landed on burning wreckage and died.[60]

See also

References

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  2. ^ a b "Hindustan Aircraft, Ltd" (PDF). Flight: 296. 27 August 1954. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 May 2013.
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  51. ^ Incident report at the Aviation Safety Network
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  56. ^ Incident report at the Aviation Safety Network
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