Friday, November 27, 2015

Thiruvananthapuram airport’s licence bid in trouble

Thiruvananthapuram: Securing an aerodrome licence for the Thiruvananthapuram International Airport is going to be arduous as its runway lacks the mandatory basic strip as per the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) norms.

The 3,373-metre runway lacks the150-metre basic strip from the centre line on many stretches and the Airports Authority of India (AAI) has been securing the mandatory licence for the airport over the last 10 years by managing “temporary exemption” for non-compliance of the ICAO norms.

With the current aerodrome licence expiring in March next and the ICAO team flying down next month for an audit, the AAI officials are burning midnight oil to get 5.46 hectares from the State for creating the 150-metre basic strip on either side of the centre line of the runway.

Of the 5.46 hectares of land sought by the AAI for creating the basic strip, 1.39 hectares is on the Shanghumughom side, 0.40 hectares on Vallakadavu side and the remaining in between.

The laxity on the part of the State government in acquiring the required land, the reluctance of elected representatives to take up the issue with the government and the opposition raised by local people have upset the AAI officials.
27/11/15 S. Anil Radhakrishnan/The Hindu
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