Customs to carry out surprise checks on flights

Mumbai: The Mumbai Customs have been instructed to carry out surprise checks on aircraft coming from locations such as Singapore, Hong Kong, Abu Dhabi and Dubai. The verbal instruction by senior Customs authorities came following seizure of 26 Franck Muller watches worth more than Rs 2.5 crore from an Air India flight that arrived at Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport from Abu Dhabi.
The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) had found the watches in the toilet of the flight on Monday.
The seizure indicated revival of an old modus operandi that was used till the early 1980s wherein smuggled consignments, especially gold, were concealed in the aircraft toilet and were collected by a loader or cleaner.
Customs officers suspect that the smugglers had decided to revive the old modus operandi as rummaging through flights was stopped over 10 years ago.
Various airlines had complained that the practice delayed the aircraft at the runway, for which they had to pay a huge amount as parking charges. Going through a single flight takes around 30 to 45 minutes.
14/01/11 Manish Pachouly/Hindustan Times

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

Categories: Airports Jan 2011