As per terms of the agreement, the Indian Airlines will build a new MRO facility at the new international airport at Shamshabad. The existing operations at Begumpet Airport are expected to be transferred to the new MRO once the new facility is completed and commissioned at the new international airport around the time the airport goes operational in the first quarter of 2008.

GHIAL will invest and build connecting taxiway, apron and engine run-up bay as common facilities for the Indian Airlines' MRO.

The facility in Begumpet airport handles the initial maintenance checks (including C-Checks on IA's Airbus-320 aircraft. The IA will render similar service to its aircraft as well as those belonging to Air India at the new facility.

Besides the MRO in Begumpet, the Indian Airlines has similar facilities in Delhi, Mumbai, and Kolkata airports also.

Commenting on the partnership with Indian Airlines Limited, Mr.Srinagesh, Chief Operating officer, GHIAL stated, "We are happy to have Indian Airlines Ltd set up the MRO facility in our airport at Shamshabad. With the commissioning of Indian Airlines MRO facility, it will be another step towards our endeavor to make the airport an integrated aviation facility for our key business partners like Indian Airlines."

About the company:

GMR-HIAL is a joint venture company promoted by GMR Infrastructure (63 pc); Malaysian Airports Holding Berhad (11 pc), Airports Authority of India (13 pc) and Government of Andhra Pradesh (13 pc), which has been mandated to develop a world-class international airport in about 5,500 acres in Shamshabad.

The integrated international airport is being developed in modular design and aimed to handle 12 million passengers per annum. The total project cost is Rs. 2478 crores.

The new project is set to establish Hyderabad prominently in the global aviation map and thereby contribute to the prosperity and development of the region.