Bengaluru, May 17 (IANS) The Kempegowda International Airport has registered a record profit for the first time since its inception, a statement issued by the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) said on Saturday.

The airport opened in May 2008 as an alternative to the increasingly congested HAL Airport in Bengaluru, the commercial airport serving the city. The airport is named after Kempe Gowda, the founder of Bengaluru.

The statement said that Bangalore International Airport Authority held its board meeting on Friday, chaired by Shalini Rajneesh, Chief Secretary to the Government of Karnataka and Chairperson of BIAL.

The meeting marked a historic milestone as Kempe Gowda International Airport Bengaluru (Bengaluru Airport) reported a record profit for the first time since its inception, signifying a robust financial turnaround and a testament to the airport’s strategic growth, sustainability initiatives, and operational excellence.

In addition to its strong financial performance, Bengaluru Airport has earned multiple prestigious global recognitions in 2025, further cementing its position as a leader in sustainable and safe airport operations worldwide.

Bengaluru Airport continues to build a safe, future-ready, and sustainability-driven aviation ecosystem. Recognised by global bodies for its commitment to environmental stewardship and excellence in airport management, the airport received several accolades from Airports Council International (ACI), the global authority on airport standards.

Notably, BLR Airport became the first airport in Asia to achieve Level 5 Accreditation under ACI’s Airport Carbon Accreditation programme, effective May 5, 2024. The award was formally presented during the ACI Asia-Pacific and Middle East Regional Assembly held in New Delhi. This distinction celebrates an outstanding 95.6 per cent reduction in Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions, with the airport achieving net-zero status (Scope 1 and 2) a full seven years ahead of its 2030 target, it said.

In the environmental category, the airport also received the Silver Award in the ACI Green Airports Recognition 2025 under the ‘Sustainable Energy at Airports’ theme for the 15–38 million passenger category. This marks the fourth consecutive year that Bengaluru Airport has been recognised for its sustainability leadership.

The airport had previously won the ACI Green Airport Platinum award for Carbon Management (2022) and Plastics Circularity (2023). Further highlighting its operational excellence, Bengaluru Airport was awarded the Gold Award at the inaugural ACI Asia-Pacific and Middle East Safety Recognition Award 2025.

The award, given for the airport’s paper ‘Beyond Compliance’, recognised BIAL’s proactive and innovative safety strategies that resulted in measurable improvements, setting a benchmark for safety-led airport culture in the region, it added.

–IANS

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