Navy to begin expansion at Dabolim

Panaji: The Indian Navy has decided to go ahead with its expansion plans at the Dabolim airport. Preparations are under way to build a Shore Based Test Facility (SBTF) which will be used by its Light Combat Aircrafts (LCAs) and MiG 29K fighter jets.
The SBTF, which is being set up at the naval station INS Hansa, is meant to train fighter pilots before they attempt take-off and landing on aircraft carriers.
Giving mediapersons a brief synopsis a day before the MiG 29Ks were inducted into the naval air arm, Commanding Officer (CO) of the INS Hansa, captain Surendra Ahuja, said that the SBTF in India will be only the second of its kind in the world, with Russia being the only other country to have this facility.
Ahuja also outlined the Navy's expansion plans for several new facilities at the airport, where three additional hangars and two simulators will be built.
Work on constructing a 1,255 m strip is also underway for the SBTF facility he added. A feature of the project will be the ski-jump facing the seafront. This ski jump will be a replica of the same facility available on board the mother ship for the MiG 29Ks — the INS Vikramaditya — which is being refitted and which will only sail by December 2012.
21/02/10 Times of India

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Categories: Airports Feb 2010