Look who have been ‘grounded’

Mumbai: The Marines have landed — er, been made to land — on the shores of Mumbai.
A Boeing carrying the world’s most storied fighting force was asked to land at Mumbai airport by the Indian Air Force (IAF) today after it emerged that the plane did not have permission to ferry troops over the country.
The plane, belonging to North American Airlines, had been chartered by the US Navy to carry 205 passengers, including some Marines, from Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to Utapao in Bangkok.
The plane, sources in Mumbai air traffic control said, had a civilian call sign from the directorate-general of civil aviation but did not have the mandatory air operation routing clearance from the IAF.
The routing clearance — AOR in aviation parlance — has to be procured by every foreign plane flying through Indian airspace with military equipment or personnel.
“To top that, some Marines on board were also carrying submachine guns and Glock pistols,” said a CISF officer who had inspected the plane. A source in the US consulate in Mumbai said: “The necessary clearance may have been overlooked inadvertently by the plane as the Marines were going on a holiday to Bangkok.”
The US military central command has a programme called R&R (rest and recuperation) meant for both civilians and combat personnel attached to the defence department. The consulate source added that there was nothing unusual about the presence of weapons as the Marines usually carry light arms even on R&R trips.
Soon after the plane was made to land at 7.52am, diplomatic levers started moving. The plane was eventually cleared for take-off around 2.30pm by the IAF and the civil aviation authority.
However, an IAF source said the departure had also been delayed because Myanmar — the plane will enter that country’s flight information range while flying to Bangkok — has sought clarifications related to clearances.
18/10/09 The Telegraph

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Categories: Airports Oct 2009, Foreign Oct 2009, Safety Oct 2009