Airport

Infrastructure

Contents

Giving India a flying start

3
9

The new Rajiv Gandhi

International Airport

27

New Bengaluru
International Airport

39

Kozhikode International Airport

Delhi International Airport

Moving on Fast Track

43
51

Chhatrapati Shivaji International

Airport (CSIA) - A strategic alliance
between MIAL & L&T

Airport Mosaic

55

Giving India A Flying Start

Bengaluru International Airport

irports being gateways to the respective regions

are critical in creating the right impression on
the vistors to our country. They also play a major
role in the development of business activities and
growth of the areas catered by these airports.
Favourable demographics and rapid economic growth
point to a continued boom in domestic passenger
traffic and international outbound traffic. To meet
this ever increasing demand, the Government of
India introduced the policy of Open Skies some
time ago and this has provided a powerful spurt
in traffic growth during the last two years. Indian
private airlines such as Jet, Kingfisher, Air Deccan,
Sahara and Spicejet accounts for around 60% of
the domestic passenger traffic. Some of these
airlines are also operating international flights.
While there is no doubt about the growth potential,
the key question that needs to be addressed is
building of airport infrastructure to sustain the boom
in the long run.

At present, passenger traffic is concentrated at five

major airports. About 70% of this traffic is confined
to metros with Delhi and Mumbai airports alone
accounting for 45% of passenger traffic. In view of
this the Government in addition to expanding the
airports in the metros is planning to divert traffic to
non-metros for distributing growth evenly and to
reduce the pressure on metros.
Several non-metro airports are being developed
partly through the PPP model. Airports Authority
of India (AAI) is developing the airside facilities
and terminal buildings of these airports while cityside development works are carried out on private
partnership basis. It is said that the government
has already awarded contracts for terminal building
at 15 airports and airside development, contracts
have been awarded at 24 airports.
The new Greenfield airport at Hyderabad
International Airport developed through PPP is
already functional from March 2008 and similarly

The New Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, Hyderabad

Airport Village at Hyderabad

Escalators at Bengaluru International Airport

the Bangalore International airport is ready for

operations from May 23, 2008. Modernisation
and expansion of the Delhi and Mumbai airports
are in progress. Chennai and Kolkata airports
are also proposed to be taken up for expansion/
modernisation. In order to ensure balanced airport
development around the country, a comprehensive
plan for the development of 35 non-metro airports is
also under preparation at an estimated investment of
Rs.40,000 crore for modernisation of airport
infrastructure.
As traffic moves up, the number of airports would
also increase significantly in the years to come.
The country is expected to have a good number of
private airports, popularly described as merchant
airports.
Largest Airport Builder
With the completion of construction of Hyderabad
and, Bangalore airports and work in progress
at, Delhi and Mumbai International airports, L&T

is one of the Largest Airport Builder in this part

of the world for Design & Construction of aviation
infrastructure. Some of the features of these new
generation airports are given below:
Bangalore International Airport
Limited (BIAL)
State-of-the-art terminal building having an area
of around 1.00 million sq. ft.
Construction of a 4km runway and other
infrastructure.
The airport will cater to the projected traffic
demand of 11.5 million passengers and handling
3 lakh tons of cargo per annum.
Modular construction adopted to ensure smooth
and seamless expansion to cater to future
growth.
Integrated Cargo handling facilities with of a
total built up area of 6.00 lakhs sqft

GMR Hyderabad International

Airport Limited (GHIAL)
L&T built the Greenfield Interna-tional airport at
Shamshabad involving terminal building and other
airside works including taxiways, runways, etc.
The airport is functional and is designed to handle
12 million passengers per annum. Some of the
features include:
The seven level Passenger Terminal Building
with an area of 1.17 million sq.ft..
Airside works involved construction of 4.26 km
long runway including developing many other
infrastructure.

54.00 billion to be commissioned by 2010 for

Commonwealth Games. Some of the features
include:
The Passenger Terminal Building (T3) will cater
to both domestic and international traffic and will
handle 25 million passengers per annum, more
than twice the present traffic. The total built-up
area of the new terminal building (T3) will be 5.2
million sq.ft..
A new code F runway, at 4.43 km, will be one of
the longest in Asia and equipped with CAT IIIB
a landing system.
All airport facilities like baggage handling sytems,
IT, communication, passenger boarding bridges,
flight information and displays etc.

Delhi International Airport

Private Limited (DIAL)
A World-class Airport for Delhi is a few years away.
L&T is executing the design and construction of
terminal building, runway and associated works
of Delhi International Airport valued at about Rs.

Mumbai International
Airport Ltd (MIAL)
A World-class Airport for Mumbai will also be
ready in 4 years. L&T has been entrusted with

The New Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, Hyderabad

Arrival and Departure Traffic-Forecourt

design and construction of terminal works, airside
works and ancillary facilities at Chhatrapati Shivaji
International Airport (CSIA) to be commissioned by
2012. The new terminal (Terminal 2) will come up
in the existing international terminal amidst various
challenges.

IT, communication, passenger boarding bridges,

Flight information and displays etc.
Calicut Airport
L&T recently completed the renovation and
rebuilding of Calicut airport. The total built up area
being 1.74 lakh sq.ft.

The terminal will handle 40 million passengers

per annum and this will be
commissioned in a phased
Close up view of a passanger boarding bridge
manner from 2010 to 2012.
The total built-up area of
the new terminal building
(T2) will measure 4.84
million sq.ft..
Airside works including
runway
reconstruction,
construction of new aprons
and additional taxi ways.
All airport facilities like
baggage handling sytems,

The New Rajiv Gandhi

International Airport
at Hyderabad

Inside view of the passenger Terminal Building at Hyderabad

ith the touchdown of Lufthansa flight

LH752 from Frankfurt at the Rajiv Gandhi
International Airport in Shamshabad at 00.25
hours on Sunday March 2008, the commercial
operations began at the new Airport. To receive and
welcome the first ever international flight carrying
276 passengers from Frankfurt, Germany the entire
airport was fully-lit up, with relatives and friends
thronging the arrival area. The same aircraft was
scheduled to depart at 2.30 am for Frankfurt, thus
becoming the first international flight to take off from
the airport.
All passengers and crew members were given a
rousing reception on their arrival at the new airport,
which was declared open by Mrs. Sonia Gandhi on
March 14, 2008.
Passengers reaching the new Hyderabad
International Airport for the first time were indeed

surprised to see an awe inspiring and an entirely

new looking modern airport incorporated with worldclass facilities and amenities, unprecedented in the
country. This is the first Greenfield airport built in
public-private partnership and incorporates the best
of facilities in other parts of the globe. With this, the
76-year-old Begumpet airport located in the heart of
Hyderabad city was officially shut down.
Passengers who want to reach this airport at
Shamshabad have to drive 25 km from the City.
All along the route to the new airport one can see
the work in progress of widening of access roads,
criss-crossing elevated expressways, new outer
ring road, etc all leading to the new airport.
As one enters the sprawling Shamshabad facility
having an area of 5500 acres, for some distance you
will see a dry patch of land and from a long distance
you can see the towering air-traffic control tower and

View of the Passenger Terminal Building as seen from the Air Traffic Control Tower

10

Aerotropolis

n aerotropolis is a new type of urban form

comprising aviation-intensive businesses
and related enterprises extending up to 25
kilometers (15.5 miles) outward from major
airports.
It is similar in form and function to a traditional
metropolis, which contains a central city core and
its commuter-linked suburbs. An aerotropolis
has an airport city at its core and is surrounded
by clusters of aviation-related enterprises.
Airports have evolved as drivers of business
location and urban development in the 21st
century in the same way as did highways in the
20th century, railroads in the 19th century and
seaports in the 18th century, according to Dr.
John D. Kasrada, the American academic who
defined the aerotropolis concept in 2000.

Aerotropolises are powerful engines of local

economic development, attracting air-commercelinked businesses to the land surrounding major
airports, analogous to the function of central
business districts in the downtown areas of major
cities.
Aerotropolises typically attract industries related
to time-sensitive manufacturing, e-commerce
fulfillment, telecommunications and logistics;
hotels, retail outlets, entertainment complexes
and exhibition centers; and offices for business
people who travel frequently by air or engage in
global commerce. Clusters of business parks,
logistics parks, industrial parks, distribution
centres, information technology complexes and
wholesale merchandise marts located around
the airport and along the transportation corridors
radiating from them.

A Jet Airways flight parked on the apron during the trial run operations

11

Baggage reclaim hall

Departure lounge in the Passenger Terminal Building

12

Passenger Terminal Building - Highlights

Indias first Greenfield airport
Integrated Passenger Terminal Building with initial capacity of 12 million
passengers per annum
Unique concept of Airport village
130 check-in desks with CUTE and 16 self check-in-kiosks
46 immigration counters for Quick processing
In-line baggage handling system with level-4 security system, the first of its kind in
India
Awarded to L&T ECC on 25th November 2008.
Completed all the works in a record span of 28 months.
Built up area 1.17 million sq.ft..

Special features of construction

Kalzip roof sheeting
Temple leafs for tapping natural light with great aesthetics
Bull Nose cladding surrounding PTB- the most challenging job
Good aesthetic Interiors including False ceiling, wall cladding, Flooring, etc.

Resources
Total Man hours (workmen)

13.5 Million Man hours

Total staff months

2000 staff months

No. of labourers at peak

3200 Nos.

No. of staff at peak

78 Nos.

No. of tower cranes at peak

6 Nos.

Major Quantities
Concrete

64,500 Cum

Formwork

2,28,500 sq.m

Structural steel

4,400 tons

Rebar

9,500 tons

Roofing

42,500 sq.m

Flooring

97,000 sq.m

Cladding

52,000 sq.m

Glazing

29,500 sq.m

False Ceiling

64,000 sq.m

the passenger terminal building with its massive

and design contoured Kalzip roof. However, as you
reach closer, you can see the beautiful approaches
with divided roads planted with ornamental date
palm trees on the median, landscaped gardens with
colourful flowering plants along the sides including
fountain jets and sprinklers doing their routine of
watering the plants.
The airport is a 63:11:13:13 joint venture between
Hyderabad-based GMR Hyderabad International
Airport Limited (GHIAL), Malaysia Airports Holding

13

Passenger Terminal Building showing the beautiful temple leaf pattern roof,
circular columns, check-in counters, etc.
Berhad, the Andhra Pradesh government, and the
Airports Authority of India.
Equipped to handle 7.2 million passengers in 2008,
the airport (without any expansion) is expected to
handle 12 million passengers by 2010, subsequently
scaling up to 40 million in the final phase. The
corresponding figures for cargo handling is expected
to touch 1.0 million tonnes from its present 1.0 lakh
ton capacity.
The airport is South Asias first A-380 aircraft
compatible and has Indias longest runway at 4,260
metres.
The passenger terminal building having an area
of 1.17 million sq. ft. is capable of handling twelve
million passengers per annum. It is provided with
42 stands consisting of 12 contact boarding bridges
and 30 remote stands. There are 130 check in
counters with common user terminal equipment
(CUTE), 16 self-check-in- kiosks, 46 immigration

14

counters, 30 escalators and 32 elevators. In

addition, it has conference facilities for business
travellers, hotel facilities, a hospital, retail shops
and integrated information technology systems - in
short, all the modern gadgets expected of a global
standard airport.

Airport Village
For the first time in the country an "Airport village"
has been created between the terminal building
and the public land side at level D. This consists
of a shopping arcade with a wide variety of stalls
and food courts to serve as a place for people to
"meet and greet." Those not using the airport can
also drop in here for shopping.
This apart, there is a uniquely designed retail area
inside the terminal building based on the walkthrough concept that enables customers to move
from one shop to another without having to walk
in and out of shops. Moreover, plans are afoot for

developing the area around the airport as a modern

aerotropolis.
In every respect, this is not just another airport.
It is going to be the nucleus of the country's first
aerotropolis, a new urban form that would house
business parks, hotels, residential units and
entertainment areas.

L&Ts Contribution
L&T secured two major contracts, against
international competitive bidding at GMR Hyderabad
International Airport, for the construction of:

Airside and Landside works

The airside and landside works involved construction
of a 4260m long runway, taxiways and aprons to
accommodate wide-body planes (code F- aircrafts),
including new generation aircraft, such as the A380.
In all there are 42 parking bays 12 contact and
30 remote. This apart, L&T executed the complete
airfield lighting system, fire-fighting system, fire

rescue station, installation of the aviation hydrant

system, etc. involving complete HT/LT electrical
power networks as well as sewage and water
supply networks.
This also involved construction of more than 60
allied buildings and structures such as a large cargo
terminal complex, ground handling workshops,
maintenance and engineering buildings, navaid
structures, crash fire resource stations, underground
sumps as well as sewage / water treatment plants,
a car park to accommodate over 3200 cars, the
main access road as well as connectivity to the
passenger terminal building

The Passenger Terminal Building (PTB)

L&T executed the complete civil and facade works
of the fully operational passenger terminal building a seven level modern building having a floor area of
1.17 million sq. ft., 75m high air traffic control tower
including design, supply and installation of facade
works for glass, glazing and roof.

Airside view showing the passenger boarding bridges

15

Both contracts were executed by L&T in less than 30

months, including a three-month airport operational
trial period.

Design Principle
The basic design of the passenger terminal building
is simple, attractive and loose-fit. The fluid design
is such that sequences of spaces are provided to
facilitate easy and comfortable movement and
orientation. This spaciously designed PTB ensures
rapid transit between its Domestic and International
concourses. In fact it has everything that gives one
the out-of-the-ordinary feeling. The roof, designed
as a Temple Leaf Structure, enables the natural
light to filter through. Built with modular construction
technique, the passenger terminal building has 16
skylights and this reflects the distinct Indian culture.
L&T fabricated and erected the 75m long 3m high
trusses for the erection of 40,000 sq.m Kalzip roof.

Kalzip Roofing
Another salient feature of the Passenger terminal
building is the Kalzip roof.

The Kalzip roof is a propriety product of Corus

Building Systems, Singapore consisting of
composite layers including GI liner at the bottom
followed by Cement board, vapour barrier, rock wool
insulation and kalzip sheet at the top. The system
as a whole got excellent thermal and aesthetic
properties. The method of construction involved
lifting of the kalzip roll forming machine to the roof
level for forming the corrugated sheets at that level
followed by laying and fixing of the sheets with the
kalzip accessories.

ATC tower
The tower structure is of 75m height with conical
shape. ECC encountered many difficulties in arriving
at the shape on ground due to the complexity in
design both architectural and structural.
The RC shaft of the tower structure up to 54m height
part was completed using Climbing formwork. The
conical portion of the tower commences from 5m
level and tapers outside from there till it reach 75m
level. The construction imposed several challenges
an working at such a height.

The Airport Village - a place to meet and greet passengers

16

Landscaped median on the main access road.

A platform specially designed and fabricated was
anchored to the RC shaft of the tower at 54 m level.
This avoided the costly and cumbursome process
of staging from ground.

First in India
Airport village, a new concept introduced for the
first time in India, is the place for retail, restaurants,
supermarkets outside the passenger terminal
building in level D. The 40,000-odd sq.ft. covered
village with free entry is also the place where visitors
can meet, greet and see off passengers.

Access Roads
Incoming vehicles in to the airport can find its way
in to 3 different levels as per ones requirement.
Passengers reaching the spacious car park at the
ground level can take both the ramp or the elevators
and reach either level D to pick up the passengers
or go for a shopping spree at the airport village.
From here one can reach the departure lounge in
level F through elevators.

At the same time vehicles can reach level D straight

away by taking the second level elevated road in
the middle to pick up passengers arriving there.
One can also go down the ramp or elevators to the
ground level car park to pick up a pre-paid taxi with
automated Flight Information Display System and a
separate public transportation centre further away.
ECC faced several constraints and difficulties as
follows:
On going designs supplied by Arup Consultants
(HK) during the construction period imposed many
problems due to frequent revisions in drawings.
As the location of project is totally isolated from the
city, the magnitude of cyclones and heavy winds
during rainy season was quite high. Particularly, the
hurricanes in the month of March 2006 and heavy
winds during May and June 2007 posed construction
challenges which were successfully scaled.
K. Sridharan, CCD, ECC-HQ, Chennai
with inputs from
S. Radhakrishnan, Construction Manager (PTB)

17

Airside and Landside Facilities

he EPC contract for the construction of the

airside and landside (ALS) facilities of the
airport was awarded to ECC division of L&T
and the entire project involving comprehensive
mix of complex and multidisciplinary operations
was executed by three different Business Units
of ECC Institutional & Commercial Buildings
(I&CB), Roads & Runways (R&R) and Electrical,
Instrumentation & Communication (EI&C).

Scope of Works
The scope of works involved detailed design,
working drawings, shop drawings, construction,
production, assembling, installation, testing,
commissioning and integration of all works for
the airside and landside facilities. In brief this
involved:

Aircraft aprons designated for passenger

terminal, cargo terminal and aircraft
maintenance facility. Main Apron 1120 Rm
Aircraft isolation bay
Airside service roads
Aviation fuel hydrant system
Storm water drains for runway, taxiway, aprons
and airside roads, which involved:

Concrete lined drain 17.75 km

Masonry drain 5.662 km

Concrete drain 4.772 km

The airside works

Pipe drain 4.257 km

The runway and taxiway system including

Earthen drain 24.5 km

Side view of the Passenger Terminal Building

18

adjacent restricted areas. Runway 4.26 km,

taxiway 4.36 km, 4 rapid exit taxiways and 12
connecting taxiways

 Necessary visual aids on runway, taxiways and

aprons to secure that the aircraft can operate
safely on a 24 hours basis.
Civil and building works and utilities required
for the communication, meteorological and
navigational equipment to be supplied, erected,
tested, commissioned and integrated by AAI.

Landside works
Main access roads 8.4 km
Traffic loop in front of terminal building including
upper and lower traffic forecourts.
Parking areas inside the traffic loop 2 lakh
sq.m
Road systems to other airport facilities
Connectivity road from NH7 to Airport main
access road
Storm water drains for landside roads and
other areas
Utility corridor and trenches connecting various
buildings and facilities
All utilities on the landside and airside
D G emergency power station
Construction also included some of the other
major Buildings, such as:
Cargo terminal
Crash and fire rescue (CFR) stations
Ground handling equipment and maintenance
facilities
Water treatment plant and Sewage treatment
plant
Engineering building for airline operators
Building for ground handlers Menzes & Air
India - SATs
Miscellaneous buildings such as substations,
pumping station and gate houses.

Miscellaneous Works
11 km airside/landside boundary wall
Upgradation of 9 km boundary wall to BCAS
spec
Airside fire drill facility
Operations
facilities

and

maintenance

equipment/

Electro-mechanical services
This involved execution of the Fuel Hydrant
System, which included:
11 km of 18 dia piping with 3 layer polyethylene
coating and lining.
58 fuel pit valves.
14 drains and 14 vents.
Entire piping pressure tested with JETAI fuel
@ 30 bar for 24 hrs.

External Water Supply

Water supply system for the airport catering
domestic, flushing and AC makeup water with:
5 pumping station with 22 pump sets.
12 hydropneumatic systems.
2 water treatment plants of 2500 KLD
capacity.

External Sewage System

This involved collecting the sewage from various
building clusters of the airport and transporting
them to STPs. Basically, this is a closed system
with 100% utilization of treated water from
STP, which is being used for AC make up and
irrigation.
14 km of CI and RCC piping.
3 sewage pumping stations with 6 heavy
duty sewage handling pumpsets with auto
operation
2 sewage treatment plants of 925 KLD.

19

 200 lavatories involved in ALS package with 16

km of internal piping.

Fire Fighting System

230 TR cassette
buildings.

units

for

engineering

The fire fighting system with water as medium

extended to all buildings in the ALS and the aprons
consisting of the following:

Central AC for cargo with 190 TR chillers.

16 km of piping.

Precision AC for radar building with 40 TR.

2500 sprinklers for cargo bldg.

80 Split air conditioners for auxiliary buildings.

2 pumping stations with 10 pumpsets as per

NBC.

Security Equipment:

40 external hydrants.

HVAC
Heating, Ventilation and Air conditioning for the
ALS package involved:

View of the PTB seen from the runway.

20

182 ventilation fans.

Central AC for engineering building with 70 TR

package unit.

Security equipments installed at the gatehouses

involved:
Fully integrated Rising bollards and boom
barriers for 5 gate houses.
Motorized swing gates for 3 gate houses.

As a part of the contract, the employer had

stipulated the requirement of each of the
component of the airport. Taking that as the basis
the design was taken up. Expert designers in this
field were given the assignment. The designs
were progressively prepared and submitted to the
employer for their comments and simultaneously
works were taken up.

Major Quantities of Work - ALS

Excavation

- 37 lakh Cum

Embankment

- 32 lakh Cum

GSB

- 3.70 lakh Cum

WMM/FCR

- 4.70 lakh Cum

Asphalt

- 1.60 lakh Cum

DLC

- 0.52 lakh Cum

PQC

- 0.93 lakh Cum

Structural Concrete

- 0.60 lakh Cum

Filling

- 560000 Cum

Shutterring

- 275431 sq.m

Concrete

- 140000 Cum

Rebar

- 4300 tons

Structural Stee l

- 1100 tons

Roof Sheeting

- 16000 sq.m

Tile Flooring

- 4880 sq.m

Mandatory Requirement
- This included:

Kotah Flooring

- 2596 sq.m

Painting

- 29000 sq.m

Globally recognized and accepted standards

of performance and service in accordance with
ICAO standards & IATA guidelines.

Textured Painting

- 29156 sq.m

False ceiling

- 6664 sq.m

Water Proofing

- 23163 sq.m

Glazing works

- 650 sq.m

Doors

- 390 Nos

Al joinery works

- 4743 sq.m

Masonry

- 17894 Cum

The design team stationed at ECC-HQ, Chennai

encompassing all disciplines were provided with
adequate and suitable hardware and software to
enable detailed engineering of the project. The
core design team at site interfaced with clients to
get necessary inputs and to schedule delivery of
requisite drawings / documents to site for timely
completion of works.

Requirements of statutory agencies viz.,

Directorate General of Civil Aviation, Bureau of
civil aviation security, customs and immigration
authorities.
Conditions, regulations, measures and all
requirements of whatever kind set out in
order issued by the Ministry of Environment &
Forests, government of India and the Andhra
Pradesh pollution control board.
Conditions, regulations, measures and all
requirements of whatever kind as set out
in defence and DGCA site clearance for the
project.
Conditions, regulations, measures and all
requirement of whatever kind imposed by any
applicable laws.

Major Plant & Machinery

1 Batching plant

- 110 Cum / hr.

1 Hot mix plant

- 160 tph / hr.

2 Pug mills

- 100 tph / hr. each

3 Stationary Crushers

- 150 tph / hr. each

1 mobile crusher

- 200 tph / hr.

Excavators at peak

- 30

Heavy duty dumpers

- 120

Sensor pavers

- 4

Slip form paver

- 1

Motor grader

- 10

Rollers

- 25

Manpower
200 Staff including approximately
6000 labourers at peak.

21

Runway

he runway is the longest and the widest now

in Inida. It is also the only runway in India
designed and built compliant to the super jumbo
Airbus A380 requirements. Currently it is the only
runway to be validated by the International Civil
Aviation Organisation (ICAO) for its standards
and recommended practices.
It is a proud achievement for the team who put in
a lot of hard work and toil to stringent standards
and practices of the airfield construction. It took
a little over 21 months to build this mammoth
runway from start to finish.
Key Parameters
The length of the runway designated 09-27 is
4260m is at an elevation of 610m above MSL.
The width of the runway is 60m of carriageway
and 7.5m of paved shoulders on either side. The
runway design took into consideration a realistic
A section of the main apron

22

fleet mix of aircrafts based on a 20 year projection

of traffic. LEDFAA design programme was used
to design the structure of the runway. Essentially,
the runway cross section consists of prepared
sub-grade of 95% modified MDD of CBR 12%,
selected fill of CBR 12% to 98% MMDD, granular
subbase (GSB), fine crushed rock (FCR), wearing
course consisting of DBM and BC. The finished
surface of the runway has a constant cross slope
of 1.5% on the carriageway and a longitudinal
slope the runway of not more than 1.4%.
For the first time in India fine crushed rock (FCR)
was used for runway works. International experts
have appreciated the fine workmanship and
quality standards
Major Quantities
maintained
in
laying of this
The following are the major
material. Sensor
quantities executed for the
pavers were used
completion of the runway.
Earthwork
GSB
FCR
DBM
BC
DLC
PQC

365,695 Cum
59,296 Cum
89,088 Cum
16,586 C um
15,722 Cum
6,812 Cum
12,642 Cum

The 4260m long runway

for the first time to achieve the strict tolerances

on the surface. To test the surface for loose spots
on the FCR and sub-grade a proof roller with 507
weights was deployed for the first time in India.
The other firsts included the use of SSI primer
on pavements as against SS2 normally used.
This was because of the higher penetration that
was specified. The runway wearing course was
laid with polymer modified bitumen to maintain a
higher quality of the pavement - as opposed to
ordinary grade bitumen that was recommended
by the clients. To reduce the variance in the
levels of the asphalt surface (down to 3mm) an
averaging beam was installed at the edges of the
paver which doubled up as a sensor. The surface
level tolerances specified were 3mm for BC and
6mm for DBM. Both were strictly adhered to.
The runway works were also interfaced
successfully for the provision of the airfield ground
lighting ducts and utility duct banks across the
runway cross section. This apart, the runway

works were interlaced by intermittent extensions

of connecting rapid exit taxiways. In the month
of November 2006 two new rapid exitways were
introduced. In the month of May 2007 another two
new rapid exitways were introduced increasing
the intersections on the runway to ten from the
original figure of four. It is quite commendable in
these circumstances that the runway works were
successfully completed on schedule by August
2007.
A major challenge faced in the beginning of the
project was the filling up of three major wells on
the runway. This was accomplished successfully
by the technique of filling with river sand and
quarry dust.

Sreechand Sreedhar
Engineering Co-ordinator
with inputs from
M.R. Choudhary (CM-B&F)
Vijayakumar (CM-BUCC)
Manish Agarwal (CM - R&R)

23

Electrical Works for

Illumination and Distribution

he Electrical works involved in the project were

grouped in to Airside and Landside works
(Package 4 Contract), which included Airfield
Ground Lighting System, HT Power Distribution and
LT Electrical Distribution. The Contract Particulars
are given below.

Standards & Specifications

were furnished by:

Contract value : Rs. 1500 million

- DGCA, Civil Aviation Requirements (CAR),

New Delhi.

Contract start : September 2005

Contract period : 30 months
Staff man months : 400
Labour man months : 1000.
Safety statistics : ZERO Accident

Illuminated view of main PTB apron

24

- International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO),

Montreal, Canada.
- Federation Aviation Administration (FAA), USA.

Though the contract value increased by 85%, the

contract period remained the same. The E&I project
team took up this as a big challenge and acted
upon to complete the same within the stipulated
period to the entire satisfaction of the Client. The
major quantities executed involved- 300 km of AGL

View of ATC & apron service road with lighting masts

cabling and 400 km of HT/LT cabling, 2000 lights

on the Runway/taxiway, 45 transformers of various
rating, 250 HT/LT Panels, 55km of road lighting
network and 26 substations.
The above works were executed by ECC on a war
footing basis in a vast area of 2000 acres, spread on a
8km x 6km plot.
The Standards and specifications of electrical items
were world class and latest in technology. The
imported items were 60% in terms of value. Material
management had been done in a perfect way such
that at any point of time the work did not stop due to
non-availability of materials.
The airfield ground lighting systems (AGLS) are
fully operational with the following features.

PAPIs (precision approach path indicators)

Runway approach lighting, Centreline lighting,
edge lighting, end lighting and threshold lighting
system
Taxiway
system

centreline

lighting,

edge

lighting

Taxiway guidance signs

The following systems were commissioned and fully
operational on real time basis by L&T. Moreover,
this is somewhat unique and the new Hyderabad
International Airport is the first indian airport having
these world-class facilities.
AGL remote control and monitoring system,
commissioned at ATC tower - State of the art

25

touch screen operation with OFC backbone

online control and monitoring system

central monitoring facility at airport operation

control center (AOCC).

Taxiway centreline lights individual lamp

monitoring system is a facility to monitor
individual lamps of taxiway center lights and to
provide specific path to the pilot from runway to
apron parking stand.

Zero change over time facility for runway centre

line lights, edge lights, end lights and threshold
lights circuits of airfield ground lighting system
(AGLS).

Emergency DG backup system involved:

11kV DG Sets, 2000KVA each - 6 Nos auto
changeover / synchronize / load sharing / load
shedding mode for power back up to AGL critical
circuits within 15 secs (CAT-I requirement) and
other passenger terminal building facilities within
60 secs, using high end programmable Logic
controllers (PLCs) with redundant facility.
11kV HT power distribution in ring main
configuration for 20 cluster substations
(11/0.433kV) having a length of 55km with

Illuminated view of the Airport, seen from the airside

26

Unique world class apron lighting control and

monitoring system by using common Airport
Community OFC Network
Hotline communication facility, crash fire alarm
system between Air Traffic Control tower, fire
station and AOCC.
This project is yet another milestone in L&T-ECCs
journey towards building its capability of constructing
world-class international airports on EPC basis.
A. Dhanapal,
Construction Manager
(Electrical), HIAL Project

New Bengaluru International Airport

27

he long awaited swanky new Greenfield

International Airport at Bengaluru is ready for
commercial operations from May 23, 2008.
Devanahalli, a sleepy village 35 km away from
the Bangalore City, suddenly shot in to limelight in
1991, when the Central and State Governments
decided to shift the existing HAL airport to this
new Greenfield location. Construction work on
this first ever Greenfield Airport at Devanahalli
which commenced in July 2005 was completed on
schedule by Larsen & Toubro (L&T) in 30 months.
Test run of the commercial flight operations were
conducted on March 7, 2008 and Air Deccan,
Kingfisher, Jet Flights including L&T K-7 aircraft &
IAF aircrafts touched down the virgin 4000m runway
heralding a new era of air traffic.

At peak of construction, more than 200 engineers and

administrative staff with 5200 workmen wearing yellow
and blue safety helmets carried out the construction
of this airport bustling with various activities,
non-stop for 30 months under devastating weather
conditions like heat, cold, rain, noise, dust and
pollution.
With hardly any infrastructure in place for access,
transport and accommodation, this virgin land on
a remote location was transformed by battalions of
workmen. Till end of March 2008, this was a beehive
of buzzing activities and what stands today on this
barren ground is a landmark structure dotted with
a 4000m long runway and 71,000 sq.m terminal
building, a 65m high air traffic control tower with
many other amenities and facilities for a passenger

The Passenger Terminal Building at Bengaluru International Airport, Devanahalli

28

Close-up view of shell roof elements and the glass facade at the entrance
to the Passenger Terminal Building
friendly air-traffic. The runway is designed and built
to ICAO standards and it is compatible for B-747
aircrafts.
Of the total 4,000 acres of land, around 2,000
acres are occupied by the runways, terminal
buildings, air traffic control tower, parking bays
and other structures. The remaining land is used
for other related infrastructure including phaseII expansion, extended air cargo terminals and
cold storage including hotels, landscaping and
horticulture facilities.
The air traffic control tower attracts every visitor as
one approaches the airport and this leads you in
to the sprawling transparent passenger terminal
building with its beautiful parking bays, ticketing
counters, reception and spacious visitor lounges
before one enters the departure bays.

The exuberance of architectural and structural

elements like the large glass facade panels,
extensive black granite floor studded with granite
clad columns standing tall and the entire area
capped with specially designed precast shell roof
elements with north light glazing stretching from
one end to the other is totally awe inspiring and
gives you a feeling of transparency, warmth and
openness. One can bubble with energy in this
new environment, which is the most striking feature
of this passenger terminal building. The entire
structure glows with pride like a shining star during
the night.
The airport went through some last-minute design
changes in December 2005 to accommodate an
increase in the expected passenger traffic for the
projected opening in 2008. The estimated traffic

29

flows which stood at 6.7 million passengers during

2005-06 was expected to touch 8.5 million by 2010.
Hence this necessitated an increase in the size of
the passenger terminal building, number of aircraft
stands, taxiways, passenger boarding bridges
and the main access road enabling the airport to
match the expected traffic in the coming years. The
new airport has the capability to handle 11 million
passengers per year and 45 aircraft per hour.

Public - Private Participation

Built on public-private participation, the airport
was executed by Bangalore International Airport
Limited (BIAL), a consortium of companies
comprising Siemens, Zurich Airport and Larsen
& Toubro holding 74% stake while the state
government & AAI holds the remaining 26%. The
detailed equity holdings held by the government
and private promoters are as follows:

Government of Karnataka: 13%

Siemens Project Ventures: 40%
Larsen & Toubro: 17%
Unique Zurich Airport: 17%
The airport has been designed by Kaufmann and
Van der Meer Planer AG of Switzerland. However,
the structural, architectural & mechanical services
design, detailing, procurement and construction
have been carried out by ECC, L&Ts Construction
Division.
The supply, engineering and installation of airfield
lighting, the IT and communication systems, the
baggage handling system as well as the power
supply and the building services automation system
were all executed by Siemens.
Construction of the airport mainly involved major
works as follows:

Airports Authority of India: 13%

Inside view of the spacious Passenger Terminal Building

30

Towering view of the Air Traffic Control Tower

31

Site Preparation
Site preparation involved site grading and clearance
of thick bushes as well as putting up temporary
structures including major earthwork excavation to
the tune of 70,20,000 Cum.

Airside Infrastructure
Building the airside infrastructure involved
construction of a 4000 meter long 60 meter wide
asphalt paved runway including 7.5m shoulders
on either side; 1,80,000 sq.m of allied taxiways;
3,66,000 sq.m of aprons with rigid pavement,
aircraft isolation bay and the civil works for the
airfield lighting. The runway is designed to cater to
B-747 aircraft.

Passenger Terminal Building

The moment passengers descend from his or her
vehicle in front of the passenger terminal building
(PTB), they are led in to the spaciously designed

and sheltered passenger drop-off area, which can

receive a large number of passengers, well-wishers
and other visitors. Making an entry in to the PTB,
one can see the vastness of space with a clear
view of the two levels the ground and first floor
levels. The ground floor is provided with an array
of 54 Common User Terminal Equipment (CUTE)
with passenger check-in counters, which look very
beautiful with its trim and sleek design, just to ensure
quick verification and issue of boarding passes.
Automatic x-ray screening of check-in baggage
helps passengers to move quickly to the security
check without wasting time and take their seat in
the security lounge either in the ground floor or first
floor and await their boarding call. Special display
system ensures operation of any counter at any
point of time by any airline by selecting the required
name. Vertical transportation as well as elevators
and stair cases help passengers to reach the first
floor level.

View of the Passenger Terminal Building as seen from the car park

32

Innovative Erection Method for the

Unique Roof Element

he Unique S shaped precast concrete roof element used in the passenger terminal building at
Bangaluru International Airport called for special techniques for fabrication and erection.

Since the project required a large number of roof elements, to begin with a dedicated production yard
had to be established near the terminal building with necessary facilities like casting moulds, handling
equipments like gantries for lifting and placing etc. Precast elements were produced using custombuilt steel moulds with near zero deflection, employing prefabricated reinforcement cage and self
compacting concrete. After pre-stressing, elements were shifted to storage area by high speed long
stroke hydraulic jacks. From storage yard, elements were transported by a special trolley to the terminal
building site for erection after attaining the required strength.
Lifting and placement of each element was carried out by custom built two tier portal gantry cranes.
While the lower gantry facilitated lifting of elements by top level gantry directly from the shifting trolley,
this also enabled shifting the top gantry to next bay after completing the erection in each and every
bay. Similarly, the top gantry equipped with strand jacks, carried out the lifting of element from trolley,
moving it and placing the same in its final position including alignment in one single operation. The most
challenging aspect of erection was the handling of delicate elements, each 24m long and placing them at
a height of 19m with a clearance of only 25mm. To ensure safe & trouble free operations, the entire set of
erection equipment was load tested before commencing the
erection works. Moreover, the entire production and erection
scheme was devised in such a manner, that no element was
over stressed at any stage during the erection operation.
Yet another significant aspect of this innovative erection
method included the elimination of high capacity lifting
cranes and avoidance of any type of modification to the
main structure. This apart, every major activity was
automated using hi-speed hydraulic jacks resulting in
optimum cycle times and reduced manpower. Using this
technique, a total of 234 elements were erected in a short
span of five months with an average of 2 elements per day.
The complete erection methodology including the design of
enabling structures was done in-house by an expert team
of Construction Method engineers. Meticulous planning
in design of enabling structures coupled with automation
of activities ensured that the fabrication and erection of
roof elements were completed ahead of schedule with
excellent quality standards, setting a new benchmark for
similar works in future.
K. Senthilnathan
Head (EDRC - Transportation & Infras)

33

In addition there will be 18 express counters in peak

hours for facilitating quick movement of passengers
with just one hand baggage. Swing gates are
provided for ease of operation and flexibility. There
are seven baggage handling units. Around 1700
chairs imported from Switzerland are installed in
various holding areas. Also 5 massage chairs
one in the VVIP lounge and 4 in the terminal are
installed for the benefit of passengers to ease out
their tension.

Construction Marvel
The passenger terminal building (PTB) is an
outstanding example of marvellous construction
by L&T. Having a floor area of 71,000 sq.m and
built in three levels, the PTB is specially created
for a hassle-free flow of passengers. The terminal
building is 218m long, 147m wide and 15.7m high
and at peak, this can handle more than 2700
passengers at a time.

Illuminated view of the ptb

34

Keeping in mind all comforts of air passengers, the

terminal building is proposed as a single, fully airconditioned structure catering to every international
and domestic flight passengers. Salient features
of this include easy check-in, ease of movement
to departure gates, minimal queuing as well as
comfortable shopping and waiting areas. Thus,
the entire PTB functions like a Central Processing
Building, for departures and arrivals, baggage
handling, security check, departure lounges,
and arrival baggage claim. Moreover, the design
reflects the best of airline industry practices and
caters for 24-hour-operations, under all weather
conditions, meeting complete requirements of the
IATA standards.
Concrete Shell Roof
According to Mr.Javeed Shakil, Project Manager of
L&T at BIAL project, Bangalore International Airport
is the only Airport in India which is provided with

View of the escalators

a concrete shell roof. The north light glazing is an

excellent design concept which not only provides
a solution for the day-lighting, but also enhances
the architectural beauty as well as the functional
efficiency of the building. Moreover, this is ecofriendly being incorporated with green concepts.
The large glass facades and integrated columns
induce a feeling of spaciousness. Since modular
design concept has been adopted for the building, it
can be easily dismantled and expanded whenever
and wherever required for enhancing the passenger
amenities.
The PTB has nine bays and there are 26 precast
shell roof elements installed in each bay. Each
element is 24m long and 7m wide. All the elements
were cast in one single yard at site and transported to
the point of erection. Self Compacting Concrete was
used for high quality finish of the roof element, says
Mr. Shakil.

Terminal parking
A beautiful car park in front of the terminal building at
the ground level has been developed with aesthetic
landscaping and garden provided with fountains,
etc. for the convenience of passengers and visitors
to the airport.

Ancillary Buildings
The strategically located Air Traffic Control (ATC)
Tower having a height of 65m enables complete
view of Airside Operations for all Phases of the
Airport. It is one of the few Airports which have the
Tower on the landside. In addition to the above
infrastructure, a number of ancillary structures have
been constructed to meet various requirements for
the operation of the airport. This includes:
A three level Administration/Canteen/Security/
Technical Block (5260 sq.m),

35

Test Run of Commercial

Flights at the New Bengaluru International Airport

ith the first touchdown of a chartered

Kingfisher flight from Mumbai with invited
passengers and media persons at Devanahalli
airport on March 7, 2008 at 9.50 am-10 minutes
ahead of scheduled arrival, the swanky new
Bengaluru International airport was all set for
opening to air traffic.
The aircraft taxied down the apron as the two
snorkel fire tenders threw water jets in to the air,
creating a Water Arch, in a spectacular way,
much to the cheer of the media and guests.
Following this, Mr. K.V. Rangaswami, President
(Construction) & Member of the Board Larsen &
Toubro arrived from Mumbai by the L&T aircraft.
Two defence aircraft also took part in the test
flights. The Air Deccan flight, which took off from
the HAL airport then landed in the new airport,
culminating the days itinerary of flight arrivals.

Touch down of commercial flights at Bengaluru

International Airport.
Mr. Albert Brunner, CEO of Bengaluru
International Airport Limited (BIAL) received
KVR as well as all other passengers. A
media meet arranged in the terminal saw
Mr. Brunner address the invitees and media
persons on the facilities in the airport as well as
his future plans and operation strategies. KVR
also interacted with the media.

Mr. K.V. Rangaswami, President (Construction) and Member of the Board L&T (second from right)
along with L&T colleagues after successful completion of trial run of commercial flights at the New
Bengaluru International Airport.

36

Air side view showing an aircraft being docked to a passenger boarding bridge
Maintenance Buildings Civil & Electrical and
Mechanical (2909 sq.m),
Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting Building (1457
sq.m),
Ground Support Equipment Building (1984
sq.m),
Other Buildings DG Power House, Main Power
Substation, Compact Stations, Navaid Buildings
(4107 sq.m),
VVIP terminal (282 sq.m),
Watch towers (145 sq.m),
Security cabins (75 sq.m),
Public amenities (326 sq.m)

Landside Infrastructure
A four lane main Access Road
Secondary access road
Access roads to buildings
Car park and bus park departure car dropoff for 100 vehicles Arrival car pick-up for 58
vehicles Car park for 1550 vehicles, Bus bay for
10 vehicles includes Private Taxi Parking.
Traffic Loop in front of terminal building
1.3 km of main access road connecting trumpet
flyover outside the boundary
Civil works for electrical services

37

 Landscaping and irrigation landscape is along

the main access road including rotaries, in front
of terminal building and car park. Landscape
design has been done to ensure that no fruit
bearing trees which attracts bats and birds are
planted.

Cargo complexes for handling 300,000 tons

capacity annually

Water supply, sewage and storm water drainage

Future Opportunities

Water supply and distribution system, including

fire water supply, pump houses

The Airport Land is likely to see large commercial

development. Likely jobs include

Sewage supply lines, collection wells and

pumping stations,

MROs, ISP provider building, Golf course, IT hub,

Commercial development Airport City, Railway
station, Airport expansion

Sewage treatment plant,

Storm water drainage network including rain
water harvesting.

Miscellaneous Works

Trumpet flyover
5 star hotel with 321 rooms, restaurants and a
world class spa.

K. Sridharan
CCD-ECC HQ,
Chennai

IOTL fuel pipelines and hydrants

The 4,000m long runway at Bengaluru International Airport

38

Kozhikode International Airport

The new Kozhikode International Airport after renovation.

39

alicut Airport is one of the three international

airports located in Kerala. Calicut Airport was
given the status of international airport on February
2, 2006, thereby paving the way for the improvement
of the infrastructure there for handling international
flights.
Calicut International Airport is located at Karippur
in Malappuram district, near Calicut (Kozhikode),
Kerala, India.
The airport, was sanctioned after a long period
of struggle which began in 1977 under the
leadership of freedom fighter late K.P. Kesava
Menon. Funds were collected from Gulf Malayalis
for its development in the 1990s when the Union
Government said it did not have funds. To raise the
funds needed for airport development, the Malabar
Inside view of the Passenger Terminal Building

40

International Airport Development Society was

constituted. Later major development of facilities,
such as extension of runway from 1800m to 2700m
to facilitate operation of big-body aircraft were
carried out with loans from HUDCO.
The approach to Calicut airport runway is
surrounded by hills and valleys. Airports Authority of
India have provided runway lead-in lighting system
for the first time in India at Calicut airport as per
the recommendations of the Directorate General of
Civil Aviation.
The system has been put into service for night
operations since October 2003. Supplementing
the above lead-in lighting system, solar-powered
aviation obstruction lights are also provided at eight
critical hilltops around the Calicut Airfield.

Passenger Terminal Building seen from the Airside

Airlines currently operating from Calicut Airport are

Air India, Air Deccan, Indian Airlines, Jet Airways,
and Sri Lankan Airlines

Station and 27 km from Manjeri town. The closest

railway station is Feroke.

Calicut International Airport

Recent Renovation, Upgradation

and Expansion

Kozhikode International Airport also known as

Karipur Airport, is located at Karipur in Malappuram
district, near Kozhikode (Calicut), Kerala, India. The
airport is located 26 km from the Calicut Railway

Due to the recent Rupees one billion upgradation

of existing facilities, the infrastructure at Kozhikode
International Airport is ready to receive international
flights.

41

An inline baggage system, the first of its kind in

India that will do away with the separate X-ray of
baggage, is installed at the airport. Several airlines
have sought night parking facility at the airport,
which has presently 10 parking bays. Permitting
night parking at the airport will soon greatly improve
air-connectivity. Airports Authority of India (AAI)
will provide three aerobridges (plus options for two
extras) at the airport which will help passengers
directly enter the terminal while alighting from an
aircraft.
A 15,000-sq.m international arrival terminal has
been opened to passengers, similar to the modern
and spacious international departure terminal that
became operational on May 14, 2007. Three modern
and user-friendly conveyor belts are installed at
arrival terminal and 800 stainless steel chairs for
passengers in the security-hold area.
Escalators and elevators are also installed inside
and outside the terminal building. Facilities for the
passengers and visitors like fast-food counters,
luggage room, jewellery shop, handicraft stall, traffic
direction poles, restaurant, and cyber caf are also
opened at the airport.
The plush and practical interiors and convenient
facilities, including leather sleeperettes for transit
passengers, has definitely brought the airport to
international standards; a great improvement from
the stuffy and cramped area it once was.

Lead-in lighting system

The approach to Kozhikode airport runway is
surrounded by hills and valleys. The approach
funnel area of the runway 28 is having 30 70-m
deep undulated valley up to a distance of 6000m,
immediately following the tabletop runway, 2860m
long. This called for a special type of approach
guidance / lighting system to enhance safety for
aircraft operations both during night and during
rains with poor visibility conditions.
Airports Authority of India thus provided runway
lead-in lighting system for the first time in India at

42

Calicut airport as per the recommendations of the

Directorate General of Civil Aviation, at a cost of Rs.
170 lakhs.
The lead-in lighting system is a positive visual
guidance to the pilot along a specific approach path
for reasons such as avoiding hazardous terrain, etc.
It facilitates the pilot to follow the desired approach
path. The system is designed in such way that one
group of lights is sighted from the preceding group
of lights, finally leading the aircraft to the proximity
of threshold of the runway.
As per standards the runway lead-in lighting system,
consist of groups of lights positioned on the desired
approach path at an interval of not more than 1600
m on the extended approach path of the runway.
The desired approach path could be curved or
straight line.
The lead-in-lighting system at Calicut airport
provides desired approach path in the extended
centerline of the runway. Group of light units are
installed on the top of the 30 m high lattice towers at
four locations: 1826 m, 3121 m, 4721 m and 6193
m from the threshold of runway 28. Each group
of light consists of three sequential flashing lights
in linear configuration. The lead-in-light units are
powered through solar power system at each tower
locations with battery banks and inverters. The
lead-in-light system is planned with radio control
units for remote operation. The System operates
in three pre-selected intensity level at a flashing
rate of 120 flashes per minute to meet the various
ambient conditions.
The system has been put into service for night
operations

since

October

2003.

The

Radio

Frequency control for remote operations of the

system from ATC tower is also planned.
Supplementing the above lead-in lighting system,
solar-powered aviation obstruction lights are also
provided at eight critical hilltops around the Calicut
Airfield

Delhi International Airport

Moving on Fast Track

Perspective view of the T-3 passenger terminal building under construction at IGIA, New Delhi

43

&T is executing the Rs. 5400 crore Engineering,

Procurement & Construction Contract for GMR
Group which holds a majority stake in the recently
privatized Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL)
The project scope involves Concept Enhancement,
Design, Procurement and Construction of Delhi
International Airport by L&T in a very tight schedule
of 39 months.
The Project aims at enhancing the traffic handling
capacity of the airport from the existing 12 million
passengers per annum (mppa) level to 37 mppa
upon completion. This means from the existing
capacity of 33000 passengers per day it is expected
to be enhanced to 1 lakh passengers per day by
2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games. Currently, the
existing runway and terminal facilities are severely
overstressed by more than 150% of its capacity
utilization at peak hours resulting in tremendous
discomfort to all. Hence this fast track project has

been kick started and L&T was chosen to execute

this project in this stringent timeframe.
Scope of Works
The Scope of work involves construction of an
additional run-way, taxiways, aprons, new terminal
building - T3 for international and domestic
passengers with all international standard state-ofthe-art specialist Airport systems like airfield ground
lighting, aviation fuel hydrant system, satellite
rescue & fire fighting, visual docking & guidance
system, baggage handling system, passenger
boarding bridges, integrated airport IT systems, etc.
To support the airport infrastructure, the project also
involves design and construction of many ancillary
structures like multi level car park, airport services
building, sewage and water treatment plants,
electrical substations with large backup power
facility, etc.

A section of the existing Terminal Building at the Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi

44

Completed portion of the runway with inset

approach lights all in the runway, perhaps
first time in the world
Indira Gandhi International Airport

Project Background

The Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) at New

Delhi serves as the prime gateway to international
passengers for the North and North-West India,
providing domestic air links to all metropolitan cities
and many other cities in the country.

In 2005, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) initiated

the process of selection of joint venture partners
for the modernisation and upgrading of the Indira
Gandhi International Airport at New Delhi under an
Operation, Maintenance & Development Agreement
(OMDA).

Located on the southern outskirts of the city,

approximately 15 km from the city centre, the airport
is contained within an extensive land holding of over
22 square kilometers.
The Airport presently has two runways and separate
terminal complexes for domestic and international
operations with the domestic complex consisting of
three buildings. The two runways are designated
09/27 and 10/28. The current southern runway
10/28, is the duty runway and is used nearly 90%
during the year, due to the prevailing wind direction.
Runway 10/28 is 3,810m long x 45m wide while
Runway 09/27 is 2,813m long x 45m wide.

In February 2006 a Consortium led by the GMR

Group was declared as the successful bidder for
works. The consortium comprises the GMR Group,
Fraport AG, Malaysia Airports Niaga Sdn Berhard
and Infrastructure Development Fund. In April 2006
Delhi International Airport Private Limited (DIAL)
was incorporated as an independent Joint Venture
Company comprising the Consortium 74% and AAI
26% shareholding.
DIAL took over the operations management of
Delhi airport with effect from May 3, 2006. The
prime objective of DIAL is operating, maintaining,

45

Ariel view of the site

developing, designing, constructing, upgrading,

modernising, financing and managing the Airport.
The vision formulated by DIAL is to build, operate
and manage the airport to international standards
with emphasis on two areas:

T2 (International) DIAL shall implement a 20 year

airport Major Development Plan (MDP) developed
by the Lead Technical Advisor (LTA) consultant
group comprising of, Mott MacDonald, HOK
Architects and Pell & Fishman.

World class development and expansion

Thus MDP envisages developments in four stages

with the current Project being Phase 1. Phase 1
comprises of a new runway, passenger terminal
building (T3) and other supporting infrastructure.

World class airport management

In addition to operations and the development of
the existing Terminal T1 (Domestic) and Terminal

Construction of PTB in progress

46

The Phase 1 of the Project is conceived in two stages,

the first (Phase 1A) is to provide an operational new
runway and taxiway by February 2008 (extendable
up to June 2008) while the second (Phase 1B) is to
complete the remainder of the works by February
2010 to coincide with the 2010 Commonwealth
Games being hosted by the Government of India.
EPC Contract
L&T is executing the EPC contract for the new
development of Delhi International airport in Phase-1
which was awarded on December 9, 2006.
DIAL engaged Parsons Brinckerhoff Ltd., (PB) as
the Project Management Consultant (PMC) for the
Phase 1 of project.

Scope of Works
Phase 1A
Construction of new run way 11R/29L to 4430m x
60m along with a parallel taxiway and connecting
rapid exit taxiways.

Remote Aprons
To be constructed to provide the additional stands
required due to the new runway.
Airfield Ground Lighting and Power Supply
The navigation lights on the runway, taxiway and
the aprons for navigating the aircrafts to the landing
and stands
Satellite Rescue & Fire Fighting
Facility housing airport rescue fire fighting facility
with high speed/foam appliances available all time
to reach any part of aircraft operational surface
within 3 minutes of fire accidents.
Precast Boundary Wall
To secure the runway and taxiway and form the
boundary between airside and landside including.
Storm Water drainage and Sanitary Drains

Phase 1B
Passenger terminal building (T3) catering to

Work in progress at the new Terminal Building

47

Canyon view image of the Passenger Terminal Building under construction

domestic and international travel including all MEP,
IT and special airport related services, such as:
- Forecourt
- Passenger Boarding Bridges
- Visual Docking & Guidance System
- Landscaping
- Baggage Handling System
- Multi Level Car Park
- Airport Services Building
- Airport wide IT Systems

This Task Force Project emulates a unique model,

where 3 different SBUs synergize to ensure
completion of the project in a record time. The
complexity and enormity of the project has been
abbreviated by continuous interaction for interfacing
works. Leveraging strengths and inter BU resource
sharing to achieve optimization at higher levels
in the project are certain unique features of this
Project.

- Airside & Landside Roads

The project also forms a glorious example of interdivisional camaraderie where L & T Infotech is
lending its expertise in IT design and converting
user requirements into vendor specifications.

- WTP & STP

Current Status

- Contact Aprons
- Twin Parallel Taxiway

- PTB link to the DMRC airport station and

improving the road network.
- Fuel farms & Aviation Fuel Hydrant System

48

Project Organization

The design & procurement activities of the project

have reached very advanced stage of completion
and 13 international specialist vendors have

Another view of the runway

Perspective of the airport

49

already been brought on board.

The detailed design for airside
design is almost complete and
the for the basic architecture for
the terminal building structure
and all the specialist systems
design have been finalized.
The ongoing design activities
are mainly detailed design for
terminal building structure, IT
system schematic design and
finalization of terminal building
interior and exterior finishes.
At site, the construction works
are going on in full swing with
the two major packages of
airside construction for Phase 1A and terminal
building structure, finalized in July 2007. The work
on the runway construction is completed. The
airside construction team has completed the Phase
1A airside works.
The construction works of terminal building is also
going on in full swing round the clock with over
16,000 workmen and 1200 design and construction
staff deployed by L&T in a short time.
The peak workmen strength is likely to exceed
23000. A full fledged workmen colony with dedicated
construction skills training centers have been
constructed as site infrastructure.

Phase 1A Taxiway Asphalting works in progress

More than Rs. 150 crores worth P&M has already
been deployed by L&T to execute this challenging
project.
The project being of a very high profile nature with
national importance, there is a continuous media
focus on the developments taking place. The
project is given the utmost attention and support
by L&T management with our Chairman himself
being part of the Executive committee which
includes the Chairman of GMR.

Phas 1A - Remote Apron 301 to 305 stands handed over & operational

50

R. Shankar Narayanan
Planing Manager

Chhatrapati Shivaji
International Airport (CSIA)

A strategic alliance between MIAL & L&T

Perspective view of the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, Mumbai

51

s a crucial step forward in the modernization and

expansion of Chhatrapati Shivaji International
Airport (CSIA), Mumbai International Airport Pvt.
Ltd (MIAL) on October 30, 2007 awarded the EPC
contract to Indias leading technology, engineering
and construction company Larsen & Toubro (L&T).
According to the contract, L&T has been mandated
to build the new integrated passenger terminal and
expand the existing facilities, which will also include
the airside and landside works to be executed on
a turnkey basis. Accordingly, the new terminal,
catering to both domestic and international
passengers is expected to double the passengerhandling capacity to 40 million passengers per
annum. The total built up area of the new terminal
will be 4.84 million sq.ft..

Breathtaking view of the PTB

52

The scope of works apart from civil and structural

works in the passenger terminal building involves
finishing works, electrical and mechanical
installations, passenger boarding bridges, elevators,
and escalators, IT systems, security systems, flight
information display systems, baggage handling
systems, building management systems, furniture
and signage, etc.
The airside works includes re-construction of the
runway (RW 09-27, RW 14-32), taxiways of 4.0
lakh sq.m and aprons of 8.00 lakh sq.m which will
accommodate large wide bodied Code-F aircrafts,
airfield ground lighting system, ARFF station and
equipment and other airport support buildings.

Overall view

Interior view of
gate pier

View of the faade on air-side

53

Ancillary facilities include construction of new

international cargo terminal of approximately 1.0
lakh sq.m, new air traffic control tower at Santa
Cruz, new multi-storey car parks at Sahar and
Santa Cruz, etc.

CSIA is Indias busiest airport and will cater to 26

million passengers and 520,000 tonnes of cargo in
2007-08. MIALs vision is to transform CSIA to one
of the worlds best airports that consistently delights
customers and be the pride of Mumbai.

The entire project will be commissioned in a phased

manner from 2010 to 2012.

GVK

About MIAL
Mumbai International Airport Pvt. Ltd. (MIAL) is a
joint venture between the GVK-SA consortium and
Airports Authority of India. MIAL was awarded the
mandate of modernizing and upgrading Chhatrapati
Shivaji International Airport (CSIA) in April 2006.

GVK is amongst Indias largest infrastructure

developers with experience and expertise spanning
areas including power, roads, airports and urban
infrastructure. Till recently GVK has invested over
Rs. 5,000 crore into infrastructure projects and has
on-hand projects in the pipeline of over Rs. 12,000
crore.

Birds eye view

54

Airport Mosaic

Abu Dhabi International Airport

55

Abu Dhabi International Airport

Resurfacing main runway

Designed by Aeroport de Paris, Abu Dhabi

International Airport is the gateway to the
Emirates.

This involved strengthening / resurfacing of main

operational runway (10/28) and installation of
CAT 3 lighting system for the first time in India.

ECC secured the order from the Japanese

Joint Venture of Takenaka Komuten Co.
Ltd and Kumugai Gumi Co. Ltd the Prime
Contractors.

Length of runway : 3810 m

Architecturally, the airport is conceived like a

mushroom shaped dome structure, 72m in DIA.
The central core of the dome spreads radially to
a height of 10m, like oil fountain jutting out from
the ground.
The airport construction facilitated simultaneous
parking of 11 aircraft including five jumbos.
Passenger terminal building complex consisted
of six main sections - Passenger terminal, State
reception, Control tower, Satellite concourse,
Pre-passage ways & Link gallery
Airport was commissioned in 1978.

Sri Sathya Sai Airport, Puttaparthi

The airport construction included a terminal
building and control tower along with an airstrip

Width of runway: 45m with 7.50m shoulders on

both sides
The runway works was completed
commissioned in 2000
Airport Services
An airport is a mini city that caters to the needs of
the elite traveler on an important business trip to the
casual first time traveler on vacation. It also serves
the various industries in their logistics and has to
have an all encompassing and self serving means
of sustaining operations round the clock. Various
support facilities that are not only the means of
revenue at an airport but also essential entities
have been designed and constructed by L&T.
L&Ts presence in this sector is truly a well spread
mosaic that spreads across terminal buildings to
hangars. A few of the support facilities that L&T
has built are:
a) Cargo Services

In-house architectural and structural design was

employed

a. GHIAL Airport Cargo Building for Hyderabad

Menzies Air Cargo Private Limited

Length of runway : 2237m

Width of runway : 45 m

b. BIAL Airport Cargo building for SATS and

Menzies Boba

The Airport was commissioned in 1990

b) Flight Kitchen Services

a. Oberoi Flight Kitchen in Chennai

Indira Gandhi International

Airport, New Delhi
Visitors Lounge
Design and construction of visitors lounge and
expansion of flyover
Involved architectural and structural design
including state-of-the-art electro-mechanical
services. The two storied structure with a fully air
conditioned area of 10500sq.m to accommodate
2500 passengers was constructed using RCC
grid slab system and columns resting on isolated
footings.
The airport lounge was commissioned in 1996.

56

and

b. Flight Kitchen for Taj in Mumbai

c. Flight Kitchen for Sky Chef in Hyderabad
c) Maintenance Facilities for
Ground Handling Equipment
a. For Menzies in Hyderabad
b. For SATS in Hyderabad
c. GSE workshop for GHIAL in Hyderabad
d) Hangars and Maintenance Facilities for
Aircrafts
a. JET Hangar in Mumbai
b. Air India Hangar in Mumbai
c. Hangar in Oman Airport

Terminal building
and control tower at
Puttaparthi Airport

Runway at
Puttaparthi Airport

Indira Gandhi
International Airport,
New Delhi

57

Air India Hangar, Mumbai

Indias first maintenance and overhaul hangar
for Boeing 747 jumbo jets
Hangar with a structural steel roof having an
overhang of 76.5m is the longest cantilever
structure. The steel trusses of the roof structure
are anchored to columns by tiebacks and struts.
Columns are anchored to rock by pre-stressed
cables
The Hangar was commissioned in 1971.

Indian Airlines Hangar, Mumbai

Existing hangar at Sahar, Mumbai extended
by 8000 sq.m to accommodate wide bodied
aircrafts, providing unobstructed column free
space.
The cantilever roofing system is made of
continuous multiple folded plate units with
prestressed concrete ties.
Total length of Roof structure - 152m
Consists of two cantilever roof 62.3m each
connected in the centre over a 27.4m roof of the
service building.
The hangar was commissioned in 1994

Royal Flight Hangar at Seeb-Oman

A twin bay air-conditioned Hangar, to
accommodate two B-747 and A-380 aircrafts.
Annexe
building
involving
workshops,
offices, stores and an operations building to
accommodate engineering and Aircrew offices.
Air India Hangar, Mumbai

Executed Complete
infrastructure works.

Airfield

and

other

The flight hangar was commissioned in 2004.

Hangar for Jet Airways, Mumbai

Hangar (ground + four floors with 2,200 sq.m)
using structural steel trusses (maximum length
of truss 72m) near domestic airport at Mumbai
including an annexe (ground + three floors) and
other buildings for simulators, canteen and other
facilities.
The hangar was commissioned in 2006

Flight Kitchen at Pallavaram, Chennai

Design and construction of flight kitchen facility
for Oberoi with a capacity of 5000 meals per day.
Consists of main building (ground plus two
storey) with a built-up area of 6580 sq.m
including a basement area of approx 750 sq.m
in a total area of one acre
The ground floor consists of the receiving areas.
Unloading bays are located in the first floor
The corporate areas, employee areas and the
bond stores are provided in the second floor
The main criteria for design was to ensure
segregation of visitors, employees and materials
movement
The ancillary structures include transformer
yard, LPG gas bank and security cabin
The flight kitchen was
commissioned in 2007

completed

and

F16 Fighter Squadron at

Thumrait Airbase, Oman
Facilities to support the operation of an F16
fighter squadron at Thumrait Airbase for Royal
Air Force, Oman. Scope includes construction of
aircraft maintenance hangar (6,400 sq.m aircraft
space and 8,600 sq.m shop and administration
space) divided into two large bays, each one to
house up to seven F16s and other associated
infrastructure.

58

Indian Airlines
Hangar, Mumbai

Hangar for Jet

Airways, Mumbai

Flight Kitchen for

Oberoi at Pallavaram,
Chennai

F16 Fighter Squadron at

Thumrait Airbase, Oman

59

Mount Poonamallee Road

Manapakkam, P.B.No. 979
Chennai 600 089
[email protected]
www.Lntecc.com

60