Media release
Mangaluru, Jun 6: The Mangaluru International Airport (MIA) played host to the best young minds of this coastal city at the special aviation awareness programme (SAAP) 2022. Aimed at engaging student population of this coastal city and enhance aviation awareness among them, MIA invited 38 students and three teachers from Canara High School (CBSE) to kickstart this new initiative on Monday, June 6.
The young guests bubbling with energy and radiant in their specially designed T-shirts and caps were put through the pace of how an airport functions on any given day. The day started with basic aviation fire awareness at the aerodrome rescue and firefighting unit and ended with students and teachers expressing happiness at being the first batch of invitees to undergo this initiation.
Hands on experience in handling types of fires, rescue equipment and tools with PPE, watching the crash fire tender in action, understanding the implication of bird activity at the airport gave the guests a ringside peek into a part of the airside operations. Their visit to the new integrated terminal building gave the students an understanding of the various facets of operations at the terminal.
Post the terminal familiarization, the students got a guided tour of familiarizing themselves with the runway. This included understanding the taxiway markings and lighting, navigational aids, and the airport topography. The visit also gave them the opportunity to see firsthand how the air traffic control, control and navigation system, radars play a vital role in seamless operations at the airport.
Adithya Subrahmanya, 10 th standard student explained in a nutshell the day’s activities. Diya Kamath, his classmate described the SAAP experience as awesome. Akshatha Shenoy, principal said, “It is a day for all to remember and SAAP has given students food for thought on aviation as a career going forward.” Shobha H S and Puneeth Kumar, teachers said the event was a new learning for all.
The airport has already drawn up plans to invite students from government, aided and private schools for SAAP. Students of Sharada Vidyalaya and Podar School will be visiting this #GatewayToGoodness on June 8 and June 10 respectively. The students took home a specially designed certificate of participation and all the excitement of having seen the operations up close and personal.