TNN
Bangalore, Mar 28: Dogs have been the bane of HAL Airport. Civic authorities have not taken the issue seriously.
Stray dogs enter from the rear wall and roam on the runway. Tall grass covers the point where they enter the airport. Airport authorities have repeatedly written to the civic bodies about the menace and requested action.
Vijay Mallya, chairman and CEO of Kingfisher Airlines, said: “It is most unfortunate that the dog menace at airports in India still persists and that an incident occurred today in Bangalore.”
“The movement of dogs in the airport operational area is dangerous for aircraft movement. In case a dog comes across a moving aircraft on the runway, it may lead to a major accident. There are several incidents all over the country where dog menace created trouble to the movement of aircraft and caused monetary loss,” an earlier letter from a former HAL director to the erstwhile BMP stated. Dogs are also seen loitering in the parking area and the airport premises.
Meanwhile, within an hour of Kingfisher flight being grounded on the HAL Airport runway, five domestic flights were diverted to airports in Hyderabad and Kochi.
“The runway was closed since 9.50 pm, and no take-off nor landing was allowed. Soon after the incident, messages were flashed across the country and some international flights which were supposed to land on Thursday night were asked to reschedule,’’ ATC officials said.
“We already informed the Srilankan airlines authority and asked them not to take off,’’ officials added.
Also Read: