The Hindu : Front Page : Business as usual at airports in State

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Thursday, Mar 13, 2008
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Business as usual at airports in State

Karnataka Bureau

Operations in Bangalore, Mangalore, Hubli, Belgaum not hit

BANGALORE: It was business as usual on Wednesday not only at the HAL Airport in Bangalore but also at the other airports in the State as the non-cooperation by Airports Authority of India (AAI) employees had little impact on their functioning.

“The operations were normal,” HAL Airport Director Narender Kaushal told The Hindu.

Reports from Mangalore, Hubli and Belgaum said operations remained unaffected by the strike that began at midnight on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, holding placards and shouting slogans, AAI employees staged a demonstration outside the HAL Airport in support of their demands. The AAI Employees Union is protesting against the closure of the existing airports in Bangalore and Hyderabad once the new airports come up.

As the operations of the Bangalore airport are managed by its owner, Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd., they [operations] went on like any other day, said an airport official who did not want to be named. HAL employees did not join the strike. While HAL handles key functions at the airport, including airside activity, manning the Air Traffic Control and fire services, services inside the terminal building and navigation aids are taken care by AAI staff.

An airport official said, “We have gone through the arrival and landing of flights as per schedule and no services are affected.”

Passengers did not have any problems either in arrival or departure.

S. Gary Smith, who arrived from Mumbai, said, “I did not find any change in the working of the airport either in Mumbai or here. Everything was smooth. There were no hiccups in the baggage checking and security check.”

Similar was the experience of Principal Secretary (Finance) M.R. Sreenivasa Murthy who arrived from New Delhi. “I did not experience any problems either in Delhi or here,” he said. In Mangalore, M.R. Vasudeva, Director of the Bajpe Airport, said, “All aircraft, including domestic and international, operated normally.

Defended

AAEU Bangalore Branch Secretary and Convener of AAI Employees Joint Forum Stanley Sampath Kumar, in a statement, defended the strike. “The union is not against opening of the new airport,” he said and added that it was not clear as to why the government was “bent upon closing down the existing airport which is earning profit”.

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