Sky marshals on domestic routes to stay at NSG hubs

New Delhi: To ensure that identity of sky marshals on-board flights is kept confidential, it has been decided that marshals serving on domestic routes will stay at NSG hubs.
The decision was taken recently at a meeting convened by the ministry of civil aviation.
A sky marshal is an undercover agent on board a commercial aircraft to counter hijacking. They are deployed on a random basis on domestic flights as well as on those to neighbouring countries.
Sky marshals are drawn from the National Security Guard. “Even in cases where an NSG hub is far from the airport, it would be appropriate that sky marshals stay at the hub instead of a hotel along with other crew members,” an official said. Besides Delhi, NSG had set-up hubs in Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad and Kolkata following the 26/11 attack. In cities without an NSG hub, the cost would be borne by the carrier.
30/06/10 Tushar Srivastava/Hindustan Times

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Categories: Indian Aviation- In General Jun 2010, Safety Jun 2010