DELHI’S NEW AIRPORT

LETTER FROM DELHI: NEW AIRPORT TERMINAL IS A SYMBOL OF A NEW INDIA

Emily Wax

The Washington Post, July 3, 2010

NEW DELHI -- For years, this aspiring superpower's main international airport looked more like a congested, rundown bus station.

The low ceilings were stained with mold, fluorescent lights buzzed on and off during frequent power cuts, and the overrun bathrooms were harrowing tests of fortitude.

But that all changes Saturday when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh inaugurates a $2.8 billion terminal at Indira Gandhi International Airport, a symbol of India's economic surge ahead.

Spread over 5.5 million square feet, the glass and steel terminal can handle 34 million passengers a year. It has 92 moving walkways and 78 aerobridges connecting the boarding area directly to the aircraft. The new world-class hub is designed to support the Airbus A380, a super-jumbo jet.

"This is a huge step forward, and for India it feels like a celebration," said Kapil Kaul, who heads the Indian and Middle East arm of the Center for Asian Pacific Aviation, a consulting firm. "Terminal 3 in New Delhi is a visible symbol of the new India and our new economy. It's also a game-changing moment for India's business world. It's a momentous occasion for building confidence in our country."

Less than 1 percent of India's 1.2 billion people travel by air, Kaul said, with most in the middle and lower classes taking less expensive trains, the backbone of the country's transportation system. But the number of Indians flying is expected to reach about 165 million by 2020, he said, which would make the country's airports among the busiest in the world.

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