Trials soon for chopper corridors

Mumbai: The 80-odd choppers that take-off and land at Juhu airport will soon have a dedicated flight path. Trials for separate chopper corridors will start from July 6.
"Based on the success of the trials, one can expect these corridors to come into existence in the next three months," said an official from the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). The new route is drawn 15 nautical miles away from the Mumbai airport and is expected to reduce delays faced by choppers.
"Choppers that take off from other helipads in the city have to cross the Mumbai airport region while landing at Juhu airport. Since scheduled airlines' flights land and take-off every two minutes at the airport, these choppers are asked to go around or hold over the Sahar region. As a result, they often get delayed. But these corridors will solve the problem," he said.
The proposal to have these corridors was submitted in 2003 to the DGCA. "The proposal was made when there were single runway operations. But now we have cross runway operations. So we will have to redesign the entire airspace and upgrade it," the official said.
23/06/09 Naveeta Singh /Daily News & Analysis

To Read the News in full at Source, Click the Headline

Categories: Indian Aviation- In General Jun 2009, New Jun 2009