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| Night flights from Srinagar may take another 2-3 months | | | Jammu : Despite Defence Ministry's clearance the night flights at Srinagar international airport may take another one to two months for the start of the night operations. Official sources said that the infrastructure at the airport was to be developed and modernized before the night flights could operate from the airport. In addition to this the Airport Authority and those airlines that plan to operate night flights have to make arrangements for additional staff. The sources explained that the airport remains out of bound for the civilian aircrafts after 5 pm and hence additional staff and facilities were to be developed for keeping the airport open till 10 p.m. Even the Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has indicated that the extended air operations may take some time to become a reality owing infrastructure constraints. After the infrastructure was ready the night flights will operate till 10 p.m. At present, the last flight out of the airport is at 5 pm while the first incoming flight lands at 7 am. The airport handles 25 flights each day carrying an average 4,000 passengers. "Air headquarters has already issued instructions to extend watch hours for civil flights at Srinagar till 2200 hours on daily basis," Defence Minister A K Antony said in a communication to various state and central leaders who had pressed for allowing night flights.
The request was made to the minister in a bid to give a boost to the tourism and business sectors. However, J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah is of the view that there is a long way to go for night landing of aircraft as there was a need for the Defence Ministry and Airport Authority of India (AAI) to upgrade facilities to conform to requirements of civilian flights. Even after the start of he night flights the Ministry and the Airport Authority may not allow the services to operate during winter months as part of safety measures against snow and fog. |
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