Menzies bags USD 225 mn contract at India’s BLR Airport: Kuwait-based Agility’s subsidiary Menzies Aviation has received the green light to provide ground handling services at India’s Kempegowda International Airport Bengaluru (BLR) starting in April –– under a 15-year contract valued at USD 225 mn, according to a statement on the ADX (pdf). The firm announced plans to simultaneously pour USD 9 mn to upgrade and modernize its ground support equipment at the airport.

Menzies is expanding onto the tarmac: The firm initially formed a joint venture with operator Bangalore International Airport (BIAL) –– named Menzies Aviation (Bengaluru) Private Limited (MABPL) –– to handle cargo operations and expand air cargo services at the airport back in 2023. The JV aimed to boost capacity by an additional 40k tons by 2030 and become the sole operator at a new domestic cargo facility.

Why does the move matter? It capitalizes on the growing India-MENA traffic. Regional airliners, such as EtihadCargo and Bahrain’s Gulf Air, have increased frequencies to the airport over the last few years. The airport also recently added new destinations to regional urban centers, including Dammam, Riyadh, Jeddah, and Kuwait.

Menzies sweated for this. Menzies has been locked in law-related friction with its former partner, Bobba Aviation, over cargo and ground-handling mandates since their original JV expired. By securing this independent license, Menzies effectively ends the split-service era at BLR — integrating its 1.7k cargo team with 1k new ground-handling hires.

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