AVGEEK
How Bengaluru airport works with airlines to build new routes
Then Bengaluru airport COO Satyaki Raghunath explains how BLR works with airlines on growth and new routes. This first conversation looks at IndiGo, Air India and outreach to North American carriers.
The conversation
The 10th episode of The Indian AvGeek features the COO of BLR, Satyaki Raghunath. Satyaki delves deep into the growth of the airport, the business, talks in detail about IndiGo and Air India, about the new routes recently launched and about to be launched from the airport, how BLR has the best airline marketing team in the country and how they reached out to several North American Airlines. All that and more.
Satyaki - @SatyakiRaghuna1
Key Takeaways
- Bengaluru’s route-development work depends on sustained airline relationships. Satyaki Raghunath discussed IndiGo and Air India services already launched separately from routes still under discussion; the latter must not be reported as operating services.
- Outreach to North American airlines was a distinct part of BLR’s commercial effort. An attractive market and premium-cabin demand could support the revenue case, but airspace constraints could still obstruct a prospective service; outreach was not confirmation of a launch.
- Raghunath’s ambition to increase non-aeronautical income was intended to reduce dependence on airline charges. It was a commercial objective, not evidence that a new charging model had already been achieved.
- Capacity planning and airline fleet plans inform one another. Raghunath described discussions about IndiGo’s growth as an input into Bengaluru’s own expansion assumptions, rather than treating airport capacity as independent of airline deployment decisions.
- Bengaluru’s international proposition combines local origin-and-destination demand with domestic feed from surrounding cities. The case for a route therefore extends beyond the passengers beginning or ending their journeys in the city itself.
- Air India’s hub proposition was presented as an ecosystem: runway and terminal capability, aerospace skills, government engagement and an existing group base. Those conditions support a proposition; they do not by themselves establish a completed hub strategy.
- An announcement is not the commercial endpoint. Raghunath emphasised sustaining airline services after launch: premium revenue, connecting feed, aircraft deployment and airspace access have to support the route beyond its opening publicity.
Additional subjects
Editorial analysis
An airport has to win each route twice
An airport wins a route twice: first when an airline agrees to launch it, and again when the service makes enough commercial sense to stay. Satyaki Raghunath places that second test at the centre of Bengaluru Airport’s development story. His account shifts attention from route announcements to the work behind them: building a market case, maintaining airline relationships and providing the capacity on which a carrier can base a longer-term plan.
Growth begins with the underlying economy
Raghunath does not attribute Bengaluru’s growth solely to the airport operator. He points to the city’s industries, disposable income and position within southern India, then explains how runway and terminal investment allowed the airport to accommodate that demand. Airlines and concessionaires are described as partners rather than vendors. The implication is that infrastructure, local economic strength and commercial relationships reinforce one another; a successful terminal is not a substitute for a viable airline market.
Airline strategy is not one-size-fits-all
The conversations with IndiGo and Air India show different parts of that proposition. In Raghunath’s assessment, IndiGo’s frequency and cost discipline built scale, while domestic connectivity also supplied feed for international services. Air India’s interest combined the size of the market with capacity, terminal quality and an aerospace skills base. He describes government engagement and existing group operations as further ingredients. The airport’s pitch was therefore broader than an incentive to open a route: it offered an operating ecosystem in which an airline could invest.
Revenue and airspace govern what is possible
The discussion also makes clear why passenger volume alone is an incomplete commercial story. Raghunath sees non-aeronautical income as a way to reduce dependence on airline charges over time, while acknowledging that aviation revenue would remain dominant in his medium-term outlook. For long-haul route development, he emphasises premium demand as well as domestic feed and local passengers. North American expansion illustrates an additional constraint: an attractive market case cannot itself remove geopolitical airspace barriers. Revenue diversification, airline profitability and usable access all matter alongside the physical capacity to grow.
The enduring lesson
The broader lesson is that an airport’s network is partly an economic-development project and partly a series of airline investment decisions. A credible route proposal must translate the city’s industries, travellers and onward connections into a carrier’s earnings model, while acknowledging constraints the airport cannot control.
Questions & answers
Why does winning a new air route not mean the airport has succeeded?
The initial launch demonstrates that an airline accepted the business case. The second test is whether the service attracts sufficient demand and yield to remain. Raghunath emphasises the continuing commercial work after inauguration.
What underpins Bengaluru Airport’s network proposition?
Local industry and income provide a market foundation; runways, terminal capacity, feeder traffic and airline partnerships make that demand accessible. The airport cannot substitute advertising for those conditions.
Why might IndiGo and Air India value Bengaluru differently?
Raghunath points to IndiGo’s frequency and cost discipline on one hand, and Air India’s hub prospects, premium market and wider aerospace ecosystem on the other. Airline network models create different requirements.
How does non-aeronautical revenue affect airport strategy?
Commercial revenue beyond airline charges can diversify income and potentially reduce the airport’s dependence on aeronautical fees. Raghunath discusses this as a long-term ambition, not an already achieved state.
What can prevent a commercially promising long-haul route?
Premium-yield requirements, connecting feed and geopolitical airspace constraints are separate tests. Even strong demand cannot remove an impractical routing or network configuration.
Sources & attribution
Primary source: The Indian AvGeek — Satyaki Raghunath, originally published 6 October 2024.
Historical context: This analysis interprets a conversation released in October 2024. Guest forecasts, proposed routes, future investments and regulatory commentary are attributed to their recording period, not presented as current verified outcomes.
Editorial method: Questions and answers below are editorial paraphrases of the conversation and analysis; they are not claimed as verbatim dialogue or as a substitute for the recording. Unverified figures and subsequent developments must be checked separately before final publication.
Timeline caution: Plans, partnerships, airport status and network propositions mentioned in the editorial were subject to subsequent developments; this edition does not assert that those plans were completed.