Lohegaon airport in the race for better ratings

PUNE: The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has identified 16 airports across the country, including the city’s Lohegaon airport, for improving passenger experience and facilitation measures.
“These airports will be competing with each other to secure better airport quality service (ASQ) ratings from the Airport Council International,” AAI board member for airport operations G K Chaukiyal told TOI on Friday. A total of 15 areas of improvement have been identified and conveyed to the concerned airport directors, he added.
“The prime focus of this exercise will be on improvements on the airport city side to provide better ambience, pleasant horticulture and landscaped look, efficient public grievance system (PGS), cleanliness of washrooms, passenger assistance through ‘May I Help You’ counters etc,” said Chaukiyal, who conducted an extensive inspection of the Lohegaon civil enclave. Airport director Manoj K Gangal and other senior AAI officials accompanied him.
Chaukiyal had led the last major expansion drive at the Lohegaon airport that was implemented ahead of the Commonwealth Youth Games in Pune in October 2008. The AAI had then added 11,000 sq metre of construction area by developing new international departures and arrivals terminals on either sides of the main terminal building besides, expanding the apron (area where aircraft are parked) and creating new parallel taxi ways for the aircraft to make quick exit from the runway after landing.
“Space is a major constraint here,” he said, adding that being a part of the defence airfield, it is very difficult to get land for expansion. Against the existing capacity to handle 1.6 million passengers per annum, Lohegaon airport is already handling 3.6 million passengers per annum. “This is even after the expansion drive in 2008. The airport has total 26 acre land which is too little for a civil enclave. The requirement is of 90 acre. Our effort now is to give maximum facilities and to improve passenger experience within the limitations,” said Chaukiyal.
The AAI has given a target of achieving 4.5 ASQ rating to all the 16 selected airports. “Lohegaon’s ASQ rating was 4.1 for the quarter between April and June and this is a improvement over the 4.06 ASQ rating for the quarter between January and March,” he said.
Chaukiyal said, “The absence of wireless fidelity (wifi) service at the airport is one of the parameters for improvement at Lohegaon. Similarly, the AAI have a master concessionaire for attracting top notch brands in the food and beverages segment. This will be done through open tender system.”
According to airport director Gangal, “The wifi system is expected to go operational in a fortnight’s time and will be free of cost for the first 30 minutes for air passengers. We have already identified the vendor who will provide this service.”
“Recently, the airport installed a mobile-based QR code system that enables a passenger to directly connect with the AAI’s passenger grievance system by using his/her mobile or laptop to register feedback or grievance related to airport service, airlines, immigration and customs and other stakeholders. Such complaint with a unique identification number, is followed up with the concerned agency and the passenger is informed about the follow up action,” said Gangal.