Garbage dumps in vicinity of airport heighten bird-hit odds

Kolkata: Every time captain Singh turns into VIP Road after taking the right-turn flyover from New Town, Rajarhat, he glances to the right and shudders. "Scavengers hovering over the dump is an omen I can't overlook. It is extremely scary when I spot kites," the veteran pilot said.
Singh isn't the only one allergic to garbage and birds. Every pilot is wary of the dump opposite the Haldiram outlet on VIP Road. There are a couple of other dumps one next to the airport boundary wall adjacent to Jessore Road at Gauripur and another next to BT College on Jessore Road that pilots don't get to see but are equally wary about.
Such is the worry that it has become a habit for most pilots to mumble a prayer in the cockpit before takeoff or touchdown. For they are all aware that no matter how sturdy the plane, all the vulnerability would be exposed in a chance encounter with kites. The probability of such a deadly collision is alarmingly high over Kolkata than any other airport. Prayers seem to be the only reason why there hasn't been a disaster yet.
Not that there haven't been bird hits. On January 17, 2009, an engine of a JetLite flight to Guwahati caught fire after a bird hit and made priority landing. On May 13, 2008, an Air India flight to Mumbai hit a bird and made a priority landing. A couple of months earlier on March 5, 2008, an AI flight from Agartala suffered a bird hit.
09/09/10 Subhro Niyogi/Times of India

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

Categories: airports Sep 2010, Safety Sep 2010