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The seaplane finally comes to India
The aircraft, which can glide through sky and on water, will be launched today.
Updated : Dec 26, 2010, 11:21 PM IST
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Movie buffs will remember that in The Man with the Golden Gun, Roger Moore as James Bond uses a seaplane to travel to Scaramanga’s island, land on water, and ski to the beach. The seaplane has captured the imagination of flying enthusiasts and lay people the world over for decades, and will finally come to India on Monday.
This aircraft, which skillfully glides through the skies and on water has been part of several Hollywood memorables.
The stubby-looking aircraft, with a rear mounted above the wing engine, a boat-like fuselage, and landing gear for runway landings will be launched in Mumbai by the minister for civil aviation Praful Patel on Monday. This will mark the opening of the Indian airspace to seaplane operations.
A senior official at helicopter service company Pawan Hans said, “The service will be operationalised in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands as per a memorandum of understanding signed between the Andaman and Nicobar administration and Pawan Hans Helicopters. The service will be provided with a Cessna 208A (capacity of 2+8 passengers) amphibian seaplane.”
Used commonly in major island tourist destinations, the seaplane is expected to provide a boost to India’s waterfront tourism. The seaplane operation has been approved by the government of India for the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to give an impetus to tourism infrastructure. The operations will be on a 50:50 loss/profit sharing basis between PHHL and the Andaman and Nicobar administration. The service will connect Port Blair with Havelock and subsequently other islands in North Andaman. In Port Blair, it is proposed to operate from the airport. In Havelock and Diglipur, it will operate from a waterdrome.
Facilities for ferrying passengers from the shore to the pontoons; sanitisation of the waterdrome before take-off and landing; speed boats with 10-passenger capacity, a standby inflatable Gemini boat; and one floating jetty (pontoon) will be provided at each location.
The Centre has plans to introduce them in coastal destinations like Lakshadweep, Goa, Orissa etc and has decided to allow 100% foreign direct investment in this sector.
