Aizawl: Following hue and cry over the switching off of instrumental landing system (ILS) at Lengpui Airport, the Mizoram’s general administration department on Monday blamed the Airport Authority of India (AAI) for non-renewal of the license.
“The Mizoram government has done its homework to renew the license of instrumental landing system (ILS). “
“It is wrong to politicise the issue,” an official statement of GAD said, reacting to opposition Mizo National Front blaming the Congress government’s “inefficiency” for not renewing the ILS.
A number of flights have been cancelled after the ILS was turned off due to expiry of the license on March 31.
Union home minister P Chidambaram had to avoid Lengpui Airport and to take direct chopper flight to and from Silchar when he visited Mizoram last week.
Sources said, the Union minister would not take the risk of landing at the state’s lone airport in the absence of ILS.
The ILS installed at the Lengpui Airport, which has table-top runway, last year required calibration every three months for the next few years.
According to the official source, calibration had been done for two times, and the third calibration got delayed due to the AAI headquarters’ unresponsiveness.
“The AAI office at Lengpui Airport had informed its headquarters in New Delhi about the calibration a few weeks before the expiry date.
However, the calibration was not carried out forcing the directorate general of civil aviation to turn off the instrumental landing system ,” the statement issued mentioned. (UNI )