‘By Dec 31, set up radar to map movement on airfield’

Mumbai: Pulling up officials from the Airports Authority of India for the delay in setting up the Surface Movement Radar at the city airport, the civil aviation ministry has set a deadline of December 31 for the installation. The ground-based radar is crucial for the Mumbai airport because it shows a
digital map of anything from a dog to a jumbo jet moving on the tarmac even during low visibility.
Air traffic controllers have a similar map to track aircraft movement in the air, but there is no visual assistance to monitor traffic on the ground.
“We have given them a final deadline of December 31 to make the radar functional,” said Alok Sinha, joint secretary with the civil aviation ministry.
The Airports Authority of India had procured the radar in February but failed to install it before monsoon.
30/11/10 Soubhik Mitra/Hindustan Times

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Categories: Airports Nov 2010