BIA gets 'safe and sound' nod

BIA gets 'safe and sound' nod
From B S Arun, DH News Service, New Delhi:
The Bangalore International Airport (BIA) may not hit any air-pocket this time after all. The civil aviation ministry is satisfied with the progress achieved so far regarding safety issues at the new airport and plans to issue licence by April-end.

Speaking to Deccan Herald here on Friday, Director-General of Civil Aviation Kanu Gohain said: “There should be no problem for the Bangalore airport this time. The progress so far is good at the air traffic control and we may issue licence by the end of this month.”

The airport is scheduled to begin commercial operations of the May 11. The earlier scheduled opening on March 30 was halted by the ministry on safety grounds. It is the Directorate-General of Civil Aviation which issues the crucial airport licence which is the final stamp of certification declaring that the airport is fit for commercial operations. Last time, while the DGCA found the airport fit the bill in most of the 57 parameters that it certifies before issuing the overall licence, it found preparedness on critical safety aspects wanting. To top it, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) asserted that it needed more time for its air traffic controllers for “on-site” training. AAI also installed the equipment relating to CNS-ATM (Communication Navigation Surveillance-Air Traffic Management) late.

The DGCA, while giving its assent, also wants the airport to comply with the “aerodrome manual”. The contents of this manual include: aerodrome site, particulars of aerodrome required to be reported to the aeronautical information service, particulars of aerodrome operating procedures and safety measures, aerodrome administration and safety management system. The DGCA wants the airport operator to submit documents regarding these guidelines for certification.