High-rises block Flying school landing in Ranchi

Ranchi: The realty and aviation boom that took the capital to new heights could crash-land the city’s chances of bagging the state government’s first flying institute.
The first such school could now be based in Hazaribagh with Ranchi’s overcrowded skyline — due to mushrooming high-rises — and the boom in aviation services coming in the way of smooth operations of the proposed institute.
The aviation boom, ironically, would impede the smooth operations of the academy if it was set up in Ranchi, officials said. About five airlines began services to Ranchi in two years and Birsa Munda airport would not be able to handle the pressure put by these airlines and that of the academy.
According to principal secretary of the state civil aviation department A.K. Pandey, the initial proposal was to set up a flying institute each at Ranchi, Hazaribagh, Dhanbad and Daltonganj.
The capital was set to get the first one. But Ranchi started losing pole position in the race for the first institute after protests from the Airports Authority of India (AAI).
The organisation responsible for civil aviation infrastructure on the ground and in the air was displeased with the mushrooming of several high-rises within 20km of the Birsa Munda airport.
Once ready, the Jharkhand government’s first flying institute — to be established in collaboration with Birla Institute of Technology (BIT), Mesra — would offer courses in aircraft maintenance engineering and pilot training, among others.
The space and rocketry department of the BIT would be implementing the ambitious project in association with the state civil aviation department.
The proposed institutes would train youths in flying commercial aircraft and aircraft maintenance. The names of the courses are yet to be announced.
08/05/08 Amit Gupta/The Telegraph