Bangalore outgrew its old airport at HAL, a cramped field shared with an aircraft maker on the city's edge, long before planners agreed on a new site. After years of delay, a new airport opened at Devanahalli, about 35 kilometers north of the center, on 24 May 2008. HAL closed to airline traffic that same day, a change discussed for years before it finally happened.
It was one of India's first airports built under a public private partnership, meaning a private company and the government shared the cost of running it. That model was copied across India later. Traffic grew faster than almost anyone expected, pushed by the city's software industry and India's booming domestic travel market. Airlines steadily added more flights and routes to keep pace with rising demand.
The airport was renamed Kempegowda International in 2013, after the chieftain seen as the founder of Bengaluru. A second runway opened in December 2019. Terminal 2 followed in November 2022, built around indoor gardens and hanging plants that earned it the nickname the Terminal in a Garden. Bengaluru is now one of India's busiest airports, usually ranked third behind Delhi and Mumbai, and a growing gateway for long international flights.