Taxiway lights a nightmare for pilots

Mumbai: Already struggling to withstand heavy traffic, Mumbai airport is turning into a nightmare for pilots because of circuit problems that turn the taxiway lights off from time to time.
On May 27, an Indigo airbus overshot the taxiway and entered the runway. That led to a near hit with a Jet Airways plane about to land. The Indigo pilot later said the taxiway lights were off and hence, he could not spot the turn he was supposed to take.
Instead of treating the May 27 incident as a wake-up call, the airport authorities seem to have learnt nothing, which was proved by the fact that on Wednesday and Thursday, lights on as many as five taxiways functioned intermittently.
On Wednesday night, lights on taxiways code named E, E-4, P and P-3 worked intermittently, while on Thursday night, lights on the busy N1 taxiway went off for some time.
Said a Mumbai airport official on condition of anonymity, "In the event of the lights going off on the taxiway, it should be shut immediately. But in the event where three to four taxiways have to be shut, delays can taken place. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has made it mandatory to provide follow-me vehicles to guide the planes when the lights go off.'' Accordingly, follow me vehicles were provided to planes on Wednesday and Thursday.
When Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL) took over the city airport in 2006 from Airport Authority of India (AAI), a blue print of underground utilities was provided to them but MIAL sources said no such plan was handed to them.
05/06/10 Aneesh Phadnis/Mumbai Mirror

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Categories: Airports Jun 2010, Safety Jun 2010