Surprise check reveals that mandatory speed governors installed in vehicles have been tampered with; speeding led to many deaths inside airport in the recent past
Surprise check reveals that mandatory speed governors installed in vehicles have been tampered with; speeding led to many deaths inside airport in the recent past
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ERRING VEHICLE: The airline coach that hit Dyaneshwar Appakunthe a loader with Cambata Aviation, on March 30, 2008. FILE PICS |
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation's (DGCA)'s attempts to make Mumbai and Delhi airports safer in 2009 are not working.
A Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL) official revealed that a DGCA team conducted a secret check after the rules that make installation of speed governors in all vehicles entering the airport mandatory became effective on January 1.
"The locks and seals of the speed governors had been tampered with," said an airport official.
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The erring vehicles included four-wheelers and airport coaches owned by airline companies operating inside the airport. All the said vehicles had been issued licenses after the speed governors were duly checked and tested.
"Having speed governors was one of a slew of new directives issued by the DGCA in the wake of frequent accidents at the two major airports in 2008," said a MIAL spokesperson.
The MIAL had been regularly fining and barring speedsters from operating inside the airport.
There are approximately 800 vehicles operating inside the 18-km area of Mumbai's international airport, including arlines, loading companies, safety officials, and petroleum companies. New DGCA rules effective from January 1 make installation of speed governors mandatory in all vehicles that enter the apron area to ensure drivers do not exceed 30 kmph limit.
Speed kills
Mumbai Airport: On March 30, 2008, Dyaneshwar Appakunthe (40), a loader with Cambata Aviation, a ground-handling company, was killed after being run over by an airline coach. The incident occurred within the aircraft parking bay with over a dozen flights ready for departure. Fifty-odd passenger coaches, trolleys, jeeps and vans were also moving around in the zone at that time.
Mumbai Airport: A Hindustan Petroleum oil tanker ran over Suresh Patil (38), an employee of logistics firm Bax Global, on June 28, 2008, killing him. Patil was walking on the airport tarmac, when the tanker rammed into him.
Delhi Airport: Sanskriti Sinha, (25), an engineer who worked with Air Deccan, was found dead under mysterious circumstances near the taxiway at the domestic airport in New Delhi on October 22, 2007. She was reportedly run over by a vehicle while heading towards the hangar area. Her head was crushed in the accident.
