The stage is all set for placing the Hyderabad city on the global airport circuit in the next three years. Work on the state-of-the art international airport with a capacity to handle over seven million passengers traffic every year will commence shortly.

The airport at Shamshabad located centrally with to hours of flying time from the major cities in the country and three to five hours from all the south-east Asian cities, will have 30 aircraft parking stands, including 10 passenger boarding bridges. Being developed over 2,000 acres in the first phase, the airport will have to provisions to operate even larger aircraft like the A-380. The first phase of work is expected to be completed by the first quarter of 2008.

The Hyderabad International Airport Limited (HIAL), the promoter of the airport, announced its financial closure on Tuesday. A product of the partnership initiative among GMR Group, Malaysian Airports Holding Berhard (MAHB), Airports Authority of India (AAI), and the State Government, the international airport will have several state- of -the- art features such as 60 check-in counters using common user terminal equipment and extensive retail shopping, including business and luxury hotels.

While efforts to improve the road connectivity to the airport have been initiated, the promoters are working with the Government for developing an "elevated expressway" from Masab Tank to provide speedy access.

Modalities are being worked out with the Government and NHAI to develop the expressway under the BOT basis.The works include eight -laning of NH-7 on the expressway, HIAL Managing Director, Kiran K Grandhi said.

HIAL was planning commercial development inside the airport like industrial and business parks while efforts to create free trade zones were also underway to develop the airport into a "distribution hub." Support provisions for development of a logistics park on par with the global standards were being worked out and facilities like exhibition halls and convention centers as well as an aviation/ pilot training center were also being created.