Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia Writes To Kerala CM On Calicut Airport, Runway Safety Issues

In the letter, Jyotiraditya Scindia said, the safety of passengers is being gravely compromised due to the non-provision of RESA, as explicitly recommended by Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau.

Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia wrote to Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan on Calicut airport and runway safety issues. The Minister expressed his anguish over the delay in the provision of a Runway End Safety Area (RESA) at both ends of the runway at Calicut airport despite multiple requests from the Ministry since March 2022.

In the letter addressed to Pinarayi, the Union Minister said, “As you would recall, the request emanated from the recommendation of the committee co-chaired by Secretary (CA) & Air Chief Marshal Homi Major (Retd) for implementation of recommendations of the Airport Accident Investigation Bureau for Calicut Airport set up on 11.09.2021 and which submitted its reports on 23.02.22.” 

The safety of passengers is being gravely compromised due to the non-provision of RESA, as explicitly recommended by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB). Regrettably, despite our continuous efforts to communicate the urgency of this matter, the requisite land has not yet been handed over by the State Government to the Airports Authority of India (AAI), he said, as per the letter.

The Minister said that the Ministry of Civil Aviation took a tireless effort to expedite the issue but the lack of prompt action from the state government left them with no recourse. 

He said, "Given the fact that provisioning of RESA would take approximately three years after the land is handed over to AAI for the safety and well-being of all passengers, the Ministry is left with no choice but to proceed with necessary action of curtailing the runway length for the safe aircraft operation at Calicut airport from 01.08.2023 unless the land is handed over to AAI immediately."