Absence of mobile signal, locater hampers search

Guwahati: Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Dorjee Khandu would have definitely had his mobile phone with him when the Pawan Hans chopper went missing on Saturday morning.
But assuming that the chopper — a Eurocopter-built five-seater single engine AS350-B3 — landed safely in a remote location, it was not possible for him to reach out to anybody through his mobile.
“Tawang as a district has only three base trans-receiver stations (BTS), with each of them covering an area of 5-6 km in radius. And, given the topography of the district, mountain ranges often create barriers for signals to move,” a senior BSNL official based in Itanagar said on Tuesday.
While a mobile BTS normally covers 5-6 km radius in the plains, the signals might work even up to 10-15 km in hilly terrain. But people located in valleys between two steep mountain ranges are normally not in the network, he said.
The Nagar GG (grazing ground) area that has been pinpointed for focused search is one of the vast tracts in Tawang district that shares about 100 kms of international boundary with China.
Nagar GG adjoins Sela Pass, located at a height of about 14,000 feet, and is not covered by any mobile BTS.
“We don’t have any BTS in the Sela range. While the Army has its own radio network, mobile signals sometimes work like magic in Sela as well as Jaswantgarh from the Tawang or Dirang BTS provided the weather is clear. Those signals, however, do not last long,” the BSNL official said.
04/05/11 Samudra Gupta Kashyap/Indian Express

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Categories: Indian Aviation- In General May 2011, Safety May 2011