Separate agency to oversee air traffic control: Govt

Civil Aviation Minister Vayalar Ravi said that the “government is contemplating delinking of ATC operations from airport operations at an international seminar organised by the Air Traffic Controllers Guild”.

The Central government is planning to form a separate agency to oversee air traffic control (ATC) in the country.

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Civil Aviation Minister Vayalar Ravi said that the “government is contemplating delinking of ATC operations from airport operations at an international seminar organised by the Air Traffic Controllers Guild”.

At present, ATC services and Communication Navigation and Surveillance services at all civil airports in the country are the responsibility of the Airports Authority of India (AAI), including privately run airports such as Delhi and Mumbai.

The two-day seminar organised by the ATC Guild commemorates the International Day of the Air Traffic Controllers (October 20) and also celebrates 100 years of civil aviation in India. ATC is also conducting recruitment all over the country to remove the problem of shortage of staff.

“The recruitment process takes time. However, we have recruited new staff recently who are undergoing training,” said Raghavan, president of ATC Guild.

On the second day of the seminar, former president APJ Abdul Kalam and civil aviation secretary Naseem Zaidi will share their views.