Aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation on Monday ordered six major airports of the country to procure and deploy the “disabled aircraft recovery kit” by March 2020, PTI reported. The DGCA directive came a week after a SpiceJet aircraft veered off the main runway at the Mumbai airport and got stuck, forcing the runway’s closure for three days.
“It is hereby directed to procure the disabled aircraft recovery kit and position it at Kolkata, Chennai, Guwahati, Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru airports by the airport operators concerned by March 31, 2020,” the DGCA order said.
The recovery kit is used to remove any aircraft that is unable to move using its own power or through a tow tractor. Air India had to deploy its disabled aircraft recovery kit to extract the SpiceJet plane.
In its order, the DGCA reminded the airport authorities of the SpiceJet incident. “There is only one old recovery kit available with Air India and it is not adequate for the large number of airports and type of aircraft operating in India,” the aviation regulator said.
On July 9, the regulator had held a meeting where it decided that major airports in India should have the disabled aircraft recovery kit, the order added.
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