Domestic to int'l transfer to take less than an hour at Noida airport: CEO

Airport's design will offer mixed rotation, which will allow aircraft to handle domestic & int'l passengers from same bay, says CEO

With the award of the EPC (engineering, procurement and construction) contract, Noida airport is gearing up to offer multiple other marquee tenders as it aims to be operational by 2024.

The airport’s chief executive officer (CEO), Christoph Schnellmann, said the airport was working on a terminal to provide domestic to international transfer in less than an hour.

“We are a single-terminal airport. With the use of digital technology, we will be able to offer transfer time of less than 60 minutes,” he said.

IndiGo CEO Ronojoy Dutta had said airports needed to improve their transfer time to make India a hub airport like the one in Dubai.

The airport’s design will offer mixed rotation, which will allow aircraft to handle domestic and international passengers from the same bay – meaning, for an international flight from Dubai with onward domestic connection to Kolkata, the aircraft will be able to board passengers from the same gate without moving to a separate international side.

“We have focused on how to make things easier for passengers and airlines like reducing the time for transfer,” he said.

After the award of the EPC contract, the airport is looking for partners to develop cargo and logistics infrastructure over 80 acres and has started the bidding process to build a five-star hotel with more than 200 rooms.

“We are looking to develop a cargo facility over 80 acres. So the partner is expected to develop a cargo terminal facility and a storage facility for specialised cargo like perishable goods. For the hotel, we are looking for a partner on a build-and-operate model with 200 plus rooms,” Schnellmann said.

Last week, Tata Group’s infrastructure and construction arm, Tata Projects, got the contract to construct the airport.

While infrastructure major L&T and Shapoorji & Pallonji too were short-listed, sources said Tata Projects won the project, which is worth around Rs 7,000 crore, due to its aggressive financial bid.

“The difference between the winning bid and the second-highest one was significantly high,” a person said.

While Tata Projects has won the tenders for many major projects including the New Parliament Building, Mumbai Trans-Harbour Link, and metro rail lines in various cities, it doesn’t have a major airport EPC contract.

In 2018 it won the contract for a terminal building at Prayagraj airport in Uttar Pradesh and has completed the project in eleven months, a record.

L&T has several airport projects including Navi Mumbai airport, expanding Delhi international airport, and constructing a terminal at Bengaluru airport.

Schenllmann said Tata Projects convinced the board with its approach to design, construction, safety programme, and the skilled manpower.

The first phase of Noida airport will require investing Rs 5,700 crore and the initial passenger handling capacity will be 12 million per annum.

After the capacity reaches 80 per cent, the next stage of expansion, taking the capacity to 30 million, will be taken up.

The airport has asked for parity with Delhi airport, which means separate bilateral rights and points of call.

Schnellmann said while discussion on this with the government had not started, the location of the airport demanded it be treated as a separate airport.

“In the first phase we are looking at domestic traffic but as the time comes the discussion on this will start,” he said.