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ShareAhmedabad, Ahmedabad: The rise in the incidence of bird hits at the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport (SVP) in Ahmedabad has forced the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to declare it a 'critical airport'. Though this raises fresh worries about the safety of flights at SVP, sources said the DGCA announcement may lead to supply of much needed equipment to the airport to prevent bird hits.
Airport Authority of India (AAI) sources in the city said that laser guns and pyrotechnic pistols may finally be approved for SVP. Some days back, a technical team from Delhi had arrived here to give a demonstration of the equipment before AAI officials, the sources added.
AAI officials here do not deny that the number of bird hits at the Ahmedabad airport is unacceptably high but they are surprised at the DGCA data on bird hits for the city airport.
According to the DGCA data, there were 34 bird hits at SVP between January and October this year, which is a record for the airport. Data with the AAI, on the other hand, says there were only 16 bird hits at the airport during this period.
The AAI officials do not dispute the DGCA data, but they said the airlines using the airport reported all bird hits to the DGCA but they did not report them to the authorities at SVP. "The airlines don't bother to inform us about bird hits, though, on most occasions, we come to know of the bird-hit incidents," said an AAI source. "The good news is that we have been told that the DGCA has directed the airlines to report bird hits to the concerned airports as well."
According to DGCA data, there were 21 incidents of bird hits at SVP in 2008, while there were 26 in 2007. The data with the airport authorities, however, indicate that there were only 7 bird hits in 2007 and 11 in 2008.
The Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport (SVP) in Ahmedabad, which has been declared by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA)as a 'critical airport' in relation to bird-hit risk.
Sources said that as the DGCA has declared the Ahmedabad airport a 'critical' case, the authorities concerned will now do something to end the menace.
The Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL), which operates the IGI airport, New Delhi, will hold a meeting on December 10, 2009, where the AAI, DGCA and the other authorities will be present.
The DIAL is expected to come up with effective means of addressing the problem and will also demonstrate use of new equipment.
The IGI airport in New Delhi tops the chart as far as the number of bird-hit incidents is concerned. In 2008, the IGI recorded 67 bird hits, followed by the Mumbai airport which witnessed 58 such incidents.
