Mangalore airport to get new ATC-cum-technical block in 18 months

Mangalore: A new air traffic control tower-cum-technical block will be ready for Mangalore airport in 18 months. The administrative approval and expenditure sanction for construction of new control tower and technical block at the airport for Rs 26.57 crore has been obtained. "The short-listing of contractors has been completed and the tender is likely to be issued in a couple of days," said Union minister for corporate affairs M Veerappa Moily.
Delivering a keynote address at the two-day workshop on 'table-top airports and safety aspects' organized by the civil engineering department of National Institute of Technology, Karnataka, and Mangalore Airport Diamond Jubilee Celebration Committee at Surathkal on Saturday, Moily said Mangalore airport is eligible to be declared as an international airport.
"The airport has adequate safety infrastructure and runway 24 has precision approach path indicator (PAPI) and instrumental landing system (ILS) too. Regarding the safety aspect of Mangalore airport, let there be no misconceptions," he asserted, adding that the state government has agreed to provide 205 acres of land for extension of runway from the existing 8,000 feet to 9,500 feet. "Mangalore airport is not the only airport with a table-top runway. There are countless table-top runways across the world and in India too there are several such airports. All airports in North-Eastern states in India have been constructed on hills," Moily said.
30/10/11 Times of India

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Categories: airports Oct 2011