The Hindu Business Line : A wake-up call to airports after ‘dog-hit’

Bangalore, March 28 The freak instance of a dog crossing a plane at the HAL airport on Thursday night comes as a strong and timely eye-opener to the new airport operator, weeks before Bangalore transits to the Devanahalli airport.

In the end, everyone and everything came off all right, although nearly a dozen flights were either delayed at either end or diverted from landing at Bangalore between 9.30 pm on Thursday and 1.10 am on Friday. The Kingfisher Airlines’ ATR 72-500 that was taking off to Hyderabad with 25 passengers did not suffer too much impact and should be airworthy in 3-4 days, by one reckoning.

“This incident must be a warning to the new operator, who should start double-checking the necessary safety standards well in time” by the launch date of May 11, one official said.

BIAL, the builder and operator of the new Bengaluru International Airport 40 km away in predominantly rural Devanahalli, said it has put in place stringent security measures at the operational or airside, as per the International Civil Aviation Organisation standards. This was to contain entry of any unauthorised personnel or stray animals on the airside and ensure smooth and safe movement of aircraft at all times, it said in response to a query.

Canine manace

Officials who have served for a couple of decades at the HAL-owned airport concurred that a ‘dog on the runway’ instance had never happened in Bangalore, though the airport has been dogged by the canine menace.

The airport is within the city and surrounded by residences. In spite of a 6-foot-high wall, barbed wire fence and constant monitoring, dogs have sneaked in through drainage systems.

BEASTS EVERYWHERE

Kingfisher’s Chairman and CEO, Mr Vijay Mallya, said, “It is most unfortunate that the dog menace at airports in India still persists and that an incident occurred in Bangalore.”

In fact, no Indian airport is said to be proof against beastly visits; up North, aircraft have even more exotic encounters with neelghais and black bucks, some airport officials said on condition of anonymity.

On Thursday night at HAL airport, the crash point was near the defence entry point and it was not a security problem. Dim lights, drizzle and the dog being black caused the near-mishap, an official said. Luckily, the aircraft was about to take off and was able to reduce speed until the nose wheel gave in, he said.

Unlike in the West where unlicensed strays do not exist or are just killed, it is hard to get the Indian airport guards to shoot down stray dogs. There are also the stern rules against cruelty to animals, they said.

According to a senior official, the solution lay in denying the animals any source of food and strictly scrutinising and sealing the entry points.

Another official said HAL airport authorities have frequently written to the civic body - the Bangalore Mahanagara Palike – to clear the dogs from around the airport area. But the requests have not been heeded, unmindful of the Aircraft Act, 1935 that prescribes that there should be no slaughter houses, littering of food or garbage within a radius.

A BBMP official, however, said the security onus within the airport was the operator’s.

New measures

Boundary walls of prescribed height and without breach, around the airside, as per Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) regulations;

Round-the-clock perimeter patrolling on the airside by CISF personnel to prevent strays and persons. Perimeter watch towers have also been constructed for this purpose all around the boundary wall.

A wildlife controller designated to keep a constant vigil to control the menace of any strays or birds entering the airside.

The runway, taxiways and apron are inspected four times a day to ensure that they are clean and clear of strays, foreign objects or unauthorised persons and vehicles.

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