Bengaluru International Airport today reported that passenger traffic would top 9.3 million in the calendar year 2009 with cargo handled during the 12 months estimated at 161896 tons.

Current ‘daily traffic movements’ are 280, the airport said in a statement.
Based on the air traffic figures, an upward trend has been reported since July this year. The passenger traffic in the last quarter was 2.45 million, the highest ever at the airport since its opening in May last year.

“Traffic figures are seen on a steady increase with passenger traffic rising from 7,27,186 in January to an estimated 8,67,718 in December 2009″, it said.
Cargo also showed an upswing from June this year, in comparison to last year, with an increasing growth rate of 1.8 per cent in June to 20 per cent in December.

These figures show indications of the market improving from the slowdown that prevailed earlier in the year, the airport said.
The airport is looking at the addition of four new routes, three international and one domestic, every year. It is also looking at the addition of two new international carriers every year. The focus would be on connecting Bangalore to China, Africa and the US.

New passenger demand for BIA in the near-to-midterm would primarily come from airlines based in Asia and the Middle-East.
Next year, Air China has plans for the Shanghai-Chengdu-Bangalore route, while Qatar Airways has expressed intent to begin operations from here by deploying an A321 daily, arriving from Doha.

Air Asia from Kuala Lumpur is also scheduled to begin operations in April. Flights like Lufthansa and Air France that had reduced frequencies have expressed reinstatement of the same.

Other airlines like Oman Air, Sri Lankan Airways, Malaysian Airways and Tiger Airways are looking to increase weekly frequencies to Bangalore, the airport said.
Freighters FedEx, Aryan air cargo and Quikjet have also expressed intention to begin operations from Bangalore airport this season, the statement said.

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