HINDUSTAN TIMES, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2011 | special | 17

India’s best user’s choice airlines HT- MARS AIRLINE SURVEY on board TOUCH DOWN The second edition of the Hindustan Times-MaRS Airline Survey ranks airlines and airports according to customers’ satisfaction

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Abhijit Patnaik and Tushar Srivastava ■ [email protected] TOP AIRLINES TOP AIRPORTS Aviation sector he aviation industry in India has come a long way. OVERALL RANKS 100 years to be precise. ScoreRank ScoreRank From humble beginnings, needs policy rethink when Henri Piquet, a 2011 2009 2011 2009 Bengaluru 815 1 Tfrench pilot, covered a dis- Jet 806 786 1 2 Delhi T3 748 2 expert credited with pursuing major policy tance of 6 miles, carrying reforms flagged during the NDA gov- 6,500 mails on a biplane in 1911, to a flashy Kingfisher 798 794 2 1 Delhi T1 739 3 comment ernment, but not much has been wit- Vijay Mallya “personally” selecting air Indigo 785 761 3 4 Chennai 733 4 nessed in the last seven years. Airport hostesses and welcoming fliers, the indus- Hyderabad 723 5 modernisation has seen few achieve- try's evolution has been interesting to Kingfisher Red 784 746 4 6 ments. Not a single metro airport has watch. Jet lite 782 745 5 7 Ahmedabad 722 6 been modernised by the Airports And with an ever-expanding indus- Mumbai 719 7 Authority of India. The deadline for try, flyers expect certain standards.The Spice Jet 782 773 6 3 Chennai and Kolkata airports contin- 2011 HT-MaRS Airline Survey ranks Go air 775 752 7 5 Indore 705 8 ues to be extended. Even the quality domestic airlines and airports on var- Indian 766 736 8 8 Jaipur 703 9 RAJIV PRATAP RUDY milestone is far inferior to what we see ious parameters to see which one pro- Lucknow 700 10 at the Delhi and Mumbai airports(done vides customers with the highest level Industry Average 788 765 he Indian aviation sector in the past by private entities). Of the 36 non-metro of satisfaction. For decade has faced highs and lows, airports selected for modernisation, airlines, the param- Tfinally levelling off to a stage where only half have been completed. DISCLAIMER eters varied from DISCLAIMER :The survey data is a copyright of Mars Pvt. Ltd and HT Media Limited. Any use of this survey data would lead to infringe- major initiatives are needed to take the We have Dubai, Bangkok, Singapore cabin crew and ment of their copyright and may result in legal action against the Infringer. next leap. etc emerging as transit hubs. Whatever The HT-MaRS Airline check-in process, to While India is perceived to be the little position Mumbai had as India’s Survey was carried out in 10 inflight meals and is looking for immediate access to the it shows that the Indian traveller, though the current fiscal year, more than the biggest and fastest growing market, hub is gradually dwindling. Our airline cities in August-September in-cabin experience. cheapest fares,” said Director-General price conscious, values comfort and Rs 2,900 crore they lost in all of 2010- where less than 1% of the one-billion- tax structure needs to be looked at so 2011, before Kingfisher For airports, they of Civil Aviation, E K Bharat Bhushan. service equally. 11. IndiGo is the only airline to have plus people take to flights, the recent as to help airlines offer cheap tickets announced that it is going include ease of They have not only made air travel more Overall, the industry average for cus- made profits this year. price war between domestic airlines through Mumbai and other hubs. Why to close down its low-cost access and depar- affordable—frequency and coverage tomer satisfaction is higher than the A combination of low fares and high has raised the issue of their sustain- should an international passenger carrier, Kingfisher Red, ture, food and bev- have improved as well. Be it Jodhpur, 2009 Airline survey. “More people are costs are to blame. Some airlines, like ability. The perception that India has choose Delhi or Mumbai if he has to within the next four months. erages, terminal Nanded or Kandla, cheap flights are travelling and people are travelling Vijay Mallya’s Kingfisher, desperately backtracked on reforms, leaving little pay an extra 10 per cent as tax? has, as comfort and ameni- available everywhere. People who have more. This may have resulted in pas- need capital to pay off debt. space for a level-playing-field for com- Unfortunately, the policy today is such of Tuesday, cancelled 34 ties, among others. never considered flying are stepping sengers expecting less than what they The potential for growth is huge. peting airlines, needs to be corrected. that we give more incentives to Indian flights across many sectors The hot race into airports now. did before and exhibiting higher satis- India would require 1,320 new airplanes , despite suffering enormous passengers flying abroad than for in the country. between full service In India, LCCs and full-service car- faction levels. Airlines are offering bet- worth $150 billion in the next two losses, continues to sell tickets below tourism travel within the country. carriers continues, riers have the same high standard of ter services too. After all, competition decades, according to aircraft maker the operating cost. The government has Having said that the prospects are with customer service—the difference is only does have its compensation,” said Raghu Boeing Co. allowed this situation to continue by there for the aviation industry in India, pipping the 2009 chart-topper a meal on board. However, with the top Roy, CEO, Monitoring and Research With an equal balance of problems and bailing them out — but private carri- which can still be denominated to be Kingfisher Airlines for the lead spot. slots going to two full-service airlines, Systems Private Limited, our knowl- potential, the aviation sector is definite- ers are now facing the heat as a result. in it’s nascent state. The industry has As in the 2009 survey, the race for edge partner for the survey. ly up for an interesting and perhaps Last quarter witnessed all but one air- seen sweeping reforms- the first was the top two positions was close. The The airline industry finds itself stuck bumpy ride. Don’t forget to fasten your line suffering huge losses. A delegation during Mr. Madhav Rao Scindia’s biggest loser was Spicejet, falling from OVERALL, THE INDUSTRY in a paradox of high growth and heavy seatbelt. of all the private airlines in the country tenure in 1990, the second during Mr. the 3rd to the 6th rank. Indigo Airlines, AVERAGE FOR CUSTOMER losses. The aviation market is growing recently met the aviation minister and Vajpayee’s tenure in 2003. Several pol- at number 3, is the highest ranked low at an annual rate of 15%. Domestic pas- senior officials in the PMO, explaining icy initiatives have to be put in place ON THE WEB cost carrier (LCC), or budget airline as SATISFACTION THIS YEAR IS senger traffic in India touched 53.6 mil- their position and it seems Air India before we can finally see the third leg ■ For additional coverage on this year’s they are known. HIGHER THAN THE 2009 lion in 2010-2011. However, private air- survey, log on to despite bleeding, refuses to relent. of reforms in the aviation sector. Budget airlines are important in the AIRLINE SURVEY lines in India have lost an estimated Civil Aviation should remain a pri- Rajesh Pratap Rudy is former Indian context. “Our typical consumer R3,500 crore in the first six months of www.hindustantimes.com/topairlines ority sectors. The government can be Union Minister for Civil Aviation.

EVOLUTION OF AVIATION 1911 1912 1924 1927 1929 1931 1932 1933-34 1937 The first commercial civil Indian State Air Services Construction of Civil A separate Department of JRD Tata Lt.Col. Shelmerdine was JRD Tata founded Tata A number of Indian air- The Indian IN INDIA aviation flight in India took in collaboration with UK- Airports in India began at Civil Aviation was estab- was award- appointed first Director Airline, the first Indian air- lines including Indian Aircraft Act A flight back into place when Henri Piquet based Imperial Airways Dum Dum in Calcutta, lished to look after all civil ed the first General of Civil Aviation line. At the time of inde- Trans Continental was formu- time takes us carried 6500 mails on a introduced the London- Bamrauli in Allahbadi and aviation matters. The Aero pilot license (DGCA) to look after civil pendence, nine air trans- Airways, Madras Air Taxi lated to through the major Humber biplane, between Karachi-Delhi flight, the in Gilbert Hill, Bombay. Club of India was also by the Federation aviation regulatory issues. port companies carried Services, Indian National govern the milestones in the Allahabad and Naini, a first international flight to- established this year. Aeronautique International both air cargo and pas- Airways etc., commenced aviation 100-year long histo- distance of 6 miles. and-from India. on behalf of the Aero Club sengers. operations. industry. ry of civil aviation of India and Burma. HINDUSTAN TIMES, MUMBAI 18 | special | THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2011 India’s best user’s choice airlines HT- MARS AIRLINE SURVEY Airlines touch down in smaller towns TAKE OFF The airline industry in India is poised for high growth. The next decade will see flyers from tier-II and III cities leading the way

Abhijit Patnaik Bombardier, an aircraft manufacturer, has ■ [email protected] estimated that 40% of domestic demand in India will be from smaller towns by 2015. sk the average Indian traveller Given these trends, airlines are offer- what she wants most from her ing something for all — be it frequent fliers choice of airline, and the answers looking for service and comfort or the first Avary from ‘convenient schedule’, time flier looking out for the best deal. ‘quality of food’ and of course “Jet Airways offers the best schedules ‘best value for money’. With a generation while Indigo is extremely disciplined in its of Indians who believe that time saved is on-time performance,” said Mumbai-based money earned, flying has become the pre- entrepreneur Milan Zatakia, summing up ferred medium of travel. Gone are the days the demands of today’s frequent fliers. where it was considered a luxury. For the born-in-a-hurry types, the rise With domestic passengers growing from in options has been a blessing. “I prefer 1.4 crore to 4.6 crore between 2000-2010, air travel because it saves time, and is not Indians are clearly flying high. In the 2011 that expensive if one compares it with the HT-MaRS Airline survey, Jet Airways has time and energy saved,” said Jayant topped in eight of the nine parameters that Krishna, an IT consultant in Lucknow. customers rated airlines on, from ‘check- A study by the International Civil in process’ to ‘boarding’ and ‘meals’. Aviation Organisation suggests that $100 Kingfisher Airlines, the 2009 survey top- spent on the airline industry generates per, was a close second. The airline which $350 for the economy overall and 100 addi- has seen the biggest fall was Spicejet. Other tional jobs in air transport creates 650 low-cost carriers such as IndiGo and the new jobs across the economy. With more soon-to-be-shut-down Kingfisher Red have airports and greater connectivity to met- climbed in terms of scores as well as rank. ros, smaller towns are expanding their The key drivers of this sector in India business avenues, fuelling growth. have been an increase in cargo, tourist Flying from such towns has its unique traffic and a decrease in fares owing to advantages. “Bhopal is a comparatively low-cost carriers leading to the huge smaller town where you can easily report increase in passengers. Looking at the to the check-in counter 45 minutes in future, a majority of the growth is expect- advance. Moreover the traveling time from ed to come from tier-2 and tier-3 cities. home to the airport is barely 20 minutes which makes it convenient,” he adds. The story of the airline industry in India BOMBARDIER, AN AIRCRAFT has slowly moved away from how cheap MANUFACTURER, SAYS THAT the Delhi-Mumbai ticket has gotten, to 40% OF DOMESTIC DEMAND how these cities have become prominent on the aviation map. WILL COME FROM SMALL (With inputs from Soubhik Mitra in Mumbai, TOWNS BY 2015 Anupam Srivastava in Lucknow and Rahul VIJAYANAND GUPTA / HT PHOTOS Noronha in Bhopal)

TOP3AIRLINES SERVICES OFFERED Jet, set, go: Landing first on the tarmac Has the Landing/taking off Check in process Jet 818 Jet 764 Zehra Kazmi Jet and Kingfisher have risen, but the rise domestic operations, the game has changed. Maharaja lost Kingfisher 806 Kingfisher 763 ■ [email protected] has been greater for the former. For Jet, But Jet still has high standards and pro- Kingfisher Red790 Indigo 751 the 2009 score was 786 points compared fessionalism”, said Kapil Kaul, CEO South his crown? Airport services Filght boarding ith a clean sweep of all the four to 806 now, indicating that the airline has Asia, Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation. metros, Jet Airways has been able to deliver 'the joy of flying' that With all the praise, there is still room Tushar Srivastava Jet 830 Jet 806 W emerged as a clear winner in its tagline promises. for improvement. “The food has become ■ [email protected] Kingfisher 805 Jet Lite 805 the HT-MaRS Airline Survey. Passengers “I prefer Jet because they offer great progressively worse and they need to do Spice Jet 796 Kingfisher 801 across India have given the airline a customers and lounge services,” said Ram something about it,” said Biswas. nce a symbol of pride and now Arrival services Inflight meals/catering resounding thumbs-up. Mohan, 55, a software consultant. With the competition nipping at its Odismissed as a white elephant Jet 801 Jet 809 “Whenever I have flown Jet, the serv- Attuned to market needs, the airline heels, the airline has its work cut out. But torn between empire-building Kingfisher 801 Jet Lite 804 ice has been consistently good. They are has continued with Jet Konnect and it is clearly advantage Jet for now. babus and demanding trade unions, helpful and considerate. And the uniforms JetLite in sectors where full service car- Air India (AI) is struggling to find a Indigo 780 Kingfisher 796 of the flight crew are pretty good too!” said riers do not operate and has also ventured AIRLINE REPORT CARD balance between an overarching pub- Cabin crew In cabin experience Ankita Biswas, a management student. into international operations. lic sector culture and the difficult Jet 811 Jet 819 Jet has dethroned Kingfisher Airlines But while Jet has shone on the interna- 92.1% On time 18.2% Market demands of an aggressive, competi- Kingfisher 808 Kingfisher 804 across various survey parameters such tional front, it has lost some of its home performance Share tive industry in which both no-frills Kingfisher Red803 Indigo 800 as cabin crew, airport services, and check- ground. “Jet has been focusing more on players and full service charmers are in process from the 2009 survey. their international operations. With the 0.6% Flight 46 Number of cornering India’s national carrier in a The overall satisfaction score for both, entry of Indigo, Spice and GoAir in the Cancellation domestic centres pincer attack. Rohit Nandan, AI’s new chairman and managing director, can take heart TOP3AIRLINES TOWNWISE from the fact that despite being the ‘King of good ‘IndiGo’ing lowest scorer in the HT-MaRS Airline Delhi Bangalore Survey for the second time, the cabi- Jet 797 Kingfisher 900 net seems poised once again to drop a Kingfisher 767 Jet 892 times’ no places at financial lifeline to the airline which is Kingfisher Red762 Kingfisher Red888 hemorrhaging even as it had lined up the purchase of a 111-strong new fleet. Kolkata Ahmedabad more? lower prices “You need someone with the passion Jet 809 Jet 876 of JRD Tata to return the airline to its Indigo 762 Spice Jet 858 past glory. Unfortunately, we have Indian 752 Indigo 835 Shubhi Vijay HT Correspondent nobody with that kind of passion in Mumbai Lucknow ■ [email protected] ■ [email protected] India,” said Captain Mohan Jet 797 Jet lite 864 Ranganathan, an aviation expert. hile satisfaction levels with make you think of Kingfisher every time t may be the newest kid on the block, est amongst all airlines at 92.4%. Pallavi From a combined profit of over R75 Spice Jet 770 Indigo 809 Kingfisher Airlines have you fly,” adds Varma. but IndiGo has taken the Indian air- Singh, a marketing consultant, says: “They crore in 2005-06 to losses of R7,000 Kingfisher Red 769 Kingfisher 806 Wimproved from the 2009 Aviation The janta in maharaja Mallya's court Iline industry by storm. Established in are always on time and often before time, crore that AI is estimated to incur in Chennai Jaipur survey, the airline has slipped to the num- seem happy with their choice of carrier. 2006, it has taken off in a big way, becom- which is remarkable.” Singh concurs, call- fiscal 2011, the story has been one of Jet 755 Kingfisher Red 811 ber two spot overall. But it is far from los- The airline was Bangalore’s top choice ing a big name in the low-cost carrier mar- ing punctuality the ‘hallmark’ of the air- constant decline. Kingfisher 735 Spice Jet 738 ing its flash. in the metro-wise rankings. ket in no time. No wonder then, IndiGo line. “Recently, I travelled to Pune and the The airline scored a measly 766 Spice Jet 723 Jet 732 For Pradeep Varma, 55, a freelance Anubhav Gupta, a student in Banga- emerges as the best low-cost carrier in flight reached before time,” he adds. index points as compared to others, consultant in Delhi, the first choice is al- lore explains why: "It's not just about the HT-MaRS Airline Survey 2011. The turn-around time for an IndiGo finding favour only in Kolkata and Hyderabad Indore ways Kingfisher. This gold card mem- the luxury or that it’s UB Group's child, The success story of low-cost carriers flight is less than 30 minutes, a hard feat Indore in the city-wise ranking. Jet 838 Jet 805 ber says the comfort factor lures him in. the routes Kingfisher offers from Ban- is linked to the growth of India’s small to match. Though there are no compli- Poor management, controversial Spice Jet 822 Indian 795 This is reflected in its high score in the galore are a big factor.” towns and IndiGo has thrived on this. mentary meals on this no-frills airline, the hires, political interference have all con- Indigo 810 Kingfisher 782 “in-flight reading” parameter, showing Kingfisher has also done well in Del- “The in-flight snacks are one of the best service and performance matches the best. tributed to bringing AI to its present that the airline pays attention to detail. hi, Chennai, Lucknow and Indore, thus and since I am a frequent flier, the airline The IndiGo formula seems to be work- state. The airline has an unusually high With Kingfisher Red slated for a shut proving that it can hold its own, away ground staff at Guwahati are extra friend- ing its magic, as it is the only profitable employee-aircraft ratio of 243:1 (indus- down, growing concerns about the air- from ‘home’. ly and helpful,” said Patricia Mukhim, 53, airline this year. While veterans like try average is around 150:1), yet the line’s finances which have led to a cut in Though cost is the most important de- editor of The Shillong Times. Kingfisher and Jet languish in losses, service leaves much to be desired. number of flights, competition from ciding factor, Kingfisher customers don’t Offering routes between cities which IndiGo has posted a profit of R650 cr for EK Bharath Bhushan, Director low-cost carriers such as IndiGo on sec- mind shelling out an extra buck. As far as were hitherto unconnected, IndiGo has the financial year 2010-11. General, Civil Aviation, expressed no tors in which it had an advantage be- the experience of flying is concerned, the scored high satisfaction ratings in Kolkata, So look out, big boys, the competition surprise at AI’s low scores. “They need cause of the acquisition of , it ‘king’ in Kingfisher is still intact. Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Lucknow. has arrived. to improve on-time performance, clean- may seem that the ‘good times’ are on (With inputs from Soubhik Mitra These carriers have also encouraged (With inputs from Rahul Karmakar in liness; basically every single parame- the wane. in Mumbai) people to switch to air travel. In a price- Guwahati) ter,” he said. But Kingfisher continues to provide sensitive market like India, IndiGo scores its customers quality service. “Once, I a hit by offering cheaper deals. had exceeded the baggage limit by AIRLINE REPORT CARD “If you buy a ticket 15-20 days in advance, AIRLINE REPORT CARD AIRLINE REPORT CARD more than 10 kg but the staff did not you can get it cheaper than other airlines. charge me for it. Low cost airlines are 91.5% On time 18.8% IndiGo offers good connectivity to locations 92.4% On time 18.7% 73.7% On time 18.7% extremely strict about baggage limits,” performance Market Share via Delhi or Kolkata,” said Dr Amulya performance Market Share performance Market Share said Mumbai resident Abhishek Gupta. Kumar Singh, an orthopedic from Patna. DISCLAIMER :The survey data is a copyright of MaRS Pvt Ltd and HT Media “A clean craft, polite staff and excel- 1.4% Flight 63 Number of Passengers all across India rave about 0.1% Flight 26 Number of 3.1% Flight 49 Number of Limited. Any use of this survey data would lead to infringement of their copy- Cancellation domestic centres Cancellation domestic centres Cancellation domestic centres right and may result in legal action against the Infringer. lent in-flight service are things that IndiGo’s on-time performance, the high-

1939 1941 1945 1946 1948 1953 1960 1990... Urmila K Parikh became India’s first Deccan Airways was Tata Indian government estab- The Air Corporations India entered the jet Private airlines entered Captain Nivedita the first Indian woman to aircraft, founded, a joint venture Airlines lished a joint sector com- Act, 1953 nationalised age with the introduc- the fray after the de-regu- Bhasin(left) of get a pilot’s license. Tata the Harlow between the Nizam of was pany, Air India International nine airline companies tion of Boeing 707- lation of the civil aviation at Airlines started air mail trainer, Hyderabad and the Tatas. renamed as Ltd in collaboration with Air and Indian Airlines was 437 into the fleet of Air sector. The East West 26 became the services on the Karachi, was rolled Its first flight Air India India with R2 crore capital. born. The government- India. India and USA Airlines was the first youngest pilot in Ahmedabad, Bombay, out for test began in The inaugural flight took off owned airlines domi- were connected for national level private air- civil aviation his- Bellary and Madras routes flight. July 1946. on June 8, 1948 on the nated Indian skies till the first time by an line to operate in the tory to command on October 15. Mumbai-London air route. the mid-1990s Indian Airlines flight. country after 37 years. a jet aircraft. HINDUSTAN TIMES, MUMBAI THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2011 | special | 19 India’s best user’s choice airlines HT- MARS AIRLINE SURVEY voxpop Gateways of India Once I had exceeded the bag- TRAVELLER COMFORT Airports in India are better and offer more facilities. gage limit by more than 10 kg The HT- MaRS Airline Survey ranked airports according to services offered but Kingfisher staff did not charge me for it. Zehra Kazmi and Shubhi Vijay “With T3 we are blinded a bit by the the once sleepy airport at Lucknow. ABHISHEK GUPTA ■ [email protected] glam but a lot of work needs to be done. But challenges lie ahead for airport Resident,Mumbai The time required for disembarkation is development. Land acquisition (like that nstead of the familiar roar of a Boeing too much, toilets need to be placed con- faced by the Navi Mumbai airport), scarci- 777 kissing a brand new tarmac, the veniently and security checks have to be ty of funds and security hassles are just Iinauguration of Delhi's swanky streamlined,” said Ram Mohan, a con- some of them. As the number of airlines Terminal 3 will be remembered more for sultant in Delhi. jostling for airspace has risen, air con- the yelp of a dog being chased off India's Over the years, the number of fliers gestion is another problem that needs to longest runway. The dog clearly stole the using airports has increased, making them be tackled. thunder from India's largest terminal that busy places indeed. Regional centres are Authorities in Indore were forced to took more than three years to build. gaining momentum. For instance, the build a smaller car park at the new ter- The story of Indian airports is not all number of passengers using Jaipur air- minal of the Devi Ahilyabai Holkar Airport glass, chrome and steel. There was a time port has risen by 250% since 2005-06. due to land transfer issues. Jet Airways offers the best when airports were merely an after- Patna has more than doubled the num- “Airports should offer airlines the entire thought. As Kapil Kaul, CEO South Asia, ber of flights in the last year. Director- benefits of the back-end so that the air- schedule while Indigo is CAPA, puts it, “Earlier, Indian aviation General of Civil Aviation, E K Bharat lines focus on quicker turn around times, extremely disciplined in its on- was only about Air India. That scenario Bhushan feels that the growth is and will landing and taking-off seamlessly with- has changed. Now it is also about the air- be equally 'well-spread'. “Thirty-five non- out any glitches. That will save time and time performance ports.” metro airports are being modernized at costs,” says Kaul. MILAN ZATAKIA In 1998, public-private partnerships the moment. Smaller towns are coming The task of modernising airports is Entrepreneur, Mumbai arrived on the Indian scene, changing the up. The economics demands it,” he said. still a work-in-progress. face of Indian aviation. Cochin The 1460-acre Dr Babasaheb “Modernisation is not just about snazzy International Airport became the first Ambedkar International Airport at buildings. Technology scale-ups, like product of such a partnership. There have Nagpur offers better air connectivity to installing a satellite-based tracking sys- been four others- Mumbai, Delhi, domestic and foreign destinations, more tem are important as well,” said Bhushan. Hyderabad and Bangalore. passengers and more airlines. Given its “Looks aren't all that matters, after all.” The HT-MaRS Aviation Survey has geographical advantage, it links smaller But perhaps only in India, a trip to the ranked Bangalore airport as the best in cities and emerging metros in Vidarbha airport can sometimes substitute for a the country for the second survey in a and Central India. trip to the zoo. In July 2011, a Kingfisher row. “The new Bangalore airport is an Today, international airlines such as flight was stranded for hours when a few experience in itself. The coffee shops, Oman Air, Saudi Arabian Airlines and peacocks were sighted on the runway at bookstores and retail outlets make it much Buddha Airlines operate direct flights to Nagpur airport. Several barking deer and Train and roadways are obso- more attractive than the stark older one,” wild boar roam inside the vast airport lete now as I don't have time said Tara Fernandes, student. JAIPUR AIRPORT HAS SEEN A campus. A major mishap was averted Though Bangalore airport has main- when an Indigo pilot tried to save two and energy to waste. For me, tained its lead, the new Terminal 3 in 250% RISE IN PASSENGER snakes on the runway last year. price, comfort, and flight tim- Delhi, with its sheer size and snazzy inte- TRAFFIC SINCE 2005. IN PATNA, Now, that truly is Incredible India! ings all combined together. riors, has earned a nod of approval from THE NUMBER OF FLIGHTS HAS (With inputs from Ruchir Kumar in passengers. But despite the shock-and- Patna, Pradeep Kumar Maitra in Nagpur, APARNA GEHLOT awe it created, it has yet to live upto its DOUBLED IN THE LAST YEAR. Rashpal Singh & Sachin Saini in Jaipur Apparel dealer, Jaipur hype. and Anupam Srivastava in Lucknow) AJAY AGGARWAL / HT PHOTOS

TOP10AIRPORTS ACROSS PARAMETERS METHODOLOGY The survey was carried out by MaRS Monitoring and ACCESS & DEPARTURE FROM GETTING AROUND IN THE EXPERIENCE WITH FOOD AND BEVERAGES TERMINAL COMFORT Research Systems Private Limited among 2200 men AIRPORT AIRPORT SECURITY AND AMENITIES who had taken at least six flights in the past one year. ScoreRank ScoreRank ScoreRank ScoreRank ScoreRank The sample was spread ten towns- Delhi, Jaipur, Bangalore 833 1 Bangalore 821 1 Bangalore 830 1 Bangalore 806 1 Bangalore 827 1 Lucknow, Kolkata, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Indore, Jaipur 775 2 Ahmedabad 808 2 Ahmedabad 829 2 Delhi T3 764 2 Hyderabad 778 2 Chennai, Hyderabad and Bangalore. Delhi T3 737 3 Hyderabad 767 3 Hyderabad 811 3 Delhi T1 741 3 Ahmedabad 772 3 People have clearly exercised their choice. About 85% Chennai 734 4 Lucknow763 4 Lucknow801 4 Hyderabad 714 4 Delhi T3 762 4 of the sample respondents have used more than one Delhi T1 728 5 Delhi T1 757 5 Delhi T1 791 5 Mumbai 709 5 Chennai 748 5 airline in the past one year. On an average, a passen- Indore713 6 Chennai 751 6 Delhi T3 791 6 Chennai 706 6 Mumbai 746 6 ger has used 2.6 airlines in the past one year. From Mumbai 707 7 Delhi T3 743 7 Chennai 783 7 Indore703 7 Delhi T1 744 7 each respondent a rating of a maximum of two airlines, Lucknow693 8 Kolkata 737 8 Kolkata 772 8 Kolkata 655 8 Lucknow738 8 the two most used, were taken. The achieved sample of passengers was 301 for Go Air, 304 for Jet Lite, 331 Ahmedabad 648 9 Mumbai 726 9 Mumbai 748 9 Jaipur 654 9 Kolkata 724 9 for IndiGo, 336 for Spicejet, 391 for Kingfisher Red, Hyderabad 621 10 Jaipur 701 10 Indore709 10 Lucknow644 10 Indore700 10 667 for Air India, 783 for Jet Airways and 936 for Attributes Attributes Attributes Attributes Attributes Kingfisher. Availability of baggage carts/trol- Boarding info/Flight screens, Ease Courtesy and helpfulness of security Choice and price of Food & Cleanliness of Public Areas, Courtesy Survey team was led by Mr. Gaurav Panakel (gau- leys, Parking facilities, Transport to of Transit through Airport, Signage staff at entry point, Waiting time at Beverage outlets, Staff Service and helpfulness of airport staff, [email protected]). Interviews were carried out using a reach place of stay from the airport. around Terminal areas. security check-in. at Food & Beverage outlets. Waiting Comfort & Seating facilities. fully structured questionnaire.

DISCLAIMER :The survey data is a copyright of MaRS Pvt Ltd and HT Media Limited. Any use of this survey data would lead to infringement of their copyright and may result in legal action against the Infringer. TOP FOUR AIRPORTS The HT MaRS Airline Survey rated customer satisfaction with various airport services such as quality of food and beverages, parking facilities, ease of transit through airport, courtesy of staff at security check-in etc. Bengaluru airport was ranked one. The top four airports are listed below. Bengaluru Delhi - Terminal 3 Delhi - Terminal 1 Chennai

Located 35 km away from the city's cen- The upscale T3 terminal was inaugurat- A few years ago, the Delhi airport could Inching its way towards improvement, tral hub, Bengaluru International ed last year amid great chest-thumping not live up to the expectations of a city Chennai International Airport is trying Airport is in Devanahalli, off National fanfare. Spread over 5.4 million square aspiring for a place on the world map. to keep pace with a changing city. Highway 7. Though the drive to the air- feet, everything about the new terminal Dirty, lacking in essential amenities, Handling some 25 flights per hour on an port is long and tiring, the airport itself screams 'big'. It’s equipped to handle 34 unhelpful staff-these were just a few of average, the airport is now undergoing is a darling of passengers who find it million passengers annually, with 95 the problems welcoming people into an expansion and modernization pro- clean and comfortable. immigration counters and a 100-room Delhi. In 2006, the GMR-led consortium gramme. The airport scored a total of 815 index transit hotel. The multi-level car park- was awarded the mandate to modernise With construction underway, the air- points, pipping the new T3 terminal as ing, with a capacity of 4,300 cars, is the the Airport after a competitive bidding port is disarray. But once completed, it well. Bengaluru Airport scored particu- largest such facility in India. process and much has changed since promises a new domestic terminal and larly high in the 'access and departure The massiveness of the airport hits then. bigger international terminals, capable from airport' as well as the 'terminal home as soon as you enter it, but the A far cry from its days of yore, the of handling 23 million passengers a year. comfort and amenities' parameters. overtly-patterned, garish carpet ham- airport now has a wide array of restau- Over the next two years, the airport will Check-in and immigration is a breeze, pers the movement of luggage. rants and cafes, comfortable lounges and boast of 104 check-in counters, 16 aero- while the facilities are a major improve- The airport scores high in the access is easily accessible. Although it doesn’t bridges, 60 immigration counters and ment from the old airport where chaos and departure from the airport' and have the lights and glamour of Terminal two runways. reigned supreme. The state-of-the-art 'food and beverages' categories, with a 3, but in its steely,old-world yet spruced- The airport is well connected to the lounges, equipped with comfortable wide array of restaurants and a direct up avatar it is aiming for efficiency and city; though plans to connect it via metro seating, wi-fi facility and televisions ooze Metro line. But the multiple, haphazard performance. will take another four years. While the luxury and comfort, but most passen- security checks and confusing signage The airport scored high in the ‘food airport has scored well in the 'terminal gers find the departure hall cramped earn it low scores in the 'getting around and beverage’ category, as well as the comfort and amenities' category, the toi- and wanting in space. Food options can in the airport' and 'experience with ‘getting around in the airport’ and lets, which inspired horror stories from be improved as well. security' categories. ‘access and departure’ categories. many a passenger need to be improved.

1990... 1994 1998 1999 2003 2005 2010 In April, the government Air India entered the Private airlines were The first Tragedy The ‘low cost Kingfisher Airlines The brand new T-3 adopted an open-sky pol- Guinness Book of World permitted to operate private struck carrier’ began operations. terminal was inaugu- icy and allowed air taxi- Records for the largest scheduled services and airport when the era The government des- rated in New Delhi’s operators to operate evacuation effort by an private players including came up Indian began ignated Air India, Indira Gandhi flights from any airport, airline when it carried over Jet Airways, Air Sahara, in Cochin, Airlines IC when Air Indian Airlines, Jet International Airport. and decide their own 1.11 lakh passengers from , East West . 814 flight Deccan Airways and Air started flight schedules, cargo Amman to Mumbai just Airlines commenced was started its Sahara to start inter- its sea plane servic- and passenger fares. before the Gulf war began. domestic operations. hijacked in Kandahar. services. national services. es Jal Hans.

Source: PIB