No steps yet to revive Assam Flying Club

Guwahati: The Assam Flying Club, which produced a number of commercial and private pilots from Assam and other parts of the North Eastern region, is lying defunct since 1991 and despite repeated assurances by Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi, no effective step has yet been taken by the Government to revive it.
With the club lying defunct, the aspiring pilots of the North East have to go to other parts of the country for training in the flying clubs and private institutions spending substantial amounts of money. Four years back, a decision was taken to revive the club in PPP mode, but the decision is yet to be implemented because of reasons best known to the people at the helm of affairs. Two planes of the club are still lying in a corner of the hangar in the Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport and one of those can still be used after necessary repair.
The club was started in 1958 at the initiative taken by RG Baruah, who also happened to be its first president. However later, the club was run by the Directorate of Sports and gradually its decline started before it became totally defunct in 1991.
09/07/13 R Dutta Choudhury/Assam Tribune