Bangalore: Bangalore's new international airport will be the first airport in India to use an integrated automated passenger baggage reconciliation system (PBRS) when it starts operations next year March.

The system will be managed by air transport services major, SITA, which will deploy and manage its own bar code-based solution at the airport, top officials of both companies said.

Under a five-year managed services contract, Bangalore International Airport Ltd (BIAL) will make agreed monthly payments to SITA, BIAL's COO, Marcel Hungerbuehler, said.

''Nothing is more frustrating than being separated from your bags. We intend to reduce this risk to the minimum possible,'' through an integrated central infrastructure, Hungerbuehler said at a news conference here.

SITA engineers will manage the system at the airport.

According to Elyes M'Rad, SITA's south Asia regional vice-president, the $1.4-billion company generated a significant 40 per cent of its business from this segment. The company was also in contention for similar contracts at other upcoming airports in the country.

The baggage reconciliation system developed by SITA, which tracks baggage in 220 countries, combines bar codes, wireless LAN and global connectivity. It enables quicker offloading and saves aircraft delays when passengers do not show up and automatically redirects bags that missed their connection on to alternative flights.

Of the two modules being used at BIA, BagManager works through check-in, baggage sorting up to integrating with flight information systems. It also allows for high security screenings for explosives and other devices. BagMessage offers latest bag information on demand.