New Delhi: Mumbai may lose its only non-stop connection to the US for the silliest reason: billboards near the airport. Air India has complained to aviation and Maharashtra authorities that it is forced to carry only 260 passengers in the 340-seater Boeing 777 deployed on the Mumbai-Newark sector. The reason: billboards near the airport come in the path of the aircraft, forcing it to fly light to allow it take off in a way that it can steer clear of this hurdle.
TOI had reported this issue on May 1 but things have come to such a pass now that AI is threatening to cancel this flight — the only non-stop US connection from Mumbai — unless these hurdles go. "There used to be five billboards. Four were removed after we complained as but there is reportedly a court case involving the fifth one. Now, two billboards have reappeared, putting such a severe load penalty (restriction on how heavy a plane can be when it takes off) that we are forced to carry 80 seats empty," said a top AI official.
26/06/14 Saurabh Sinha/Times of India
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TOI had reported this issue on May 1 but things have come to such a pass now that AI is threatening to cancel this flight — the only non-stop US connection from Mumbai — unless these hurdles go. "There used to be five billboards. Four were removed after we complained as but there is reportedly a court case involving the fifth one. Now, two billboards have reappeared, putting such a severe load penalty (restriction on how heavy a plane can be when it takes off) that we are forced to carry 80 seats empty," said a top AI official.
26/06/14 Saurabh Sinha/Times of India
