Mangalore : Dr. M. Veerappa Moily, the union minister of corporate affairs, said that people must not have fallacy regarding the safety of Mangalore Airport since it recived the license from the DGCA and its runway has been constructed as per International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) rules, which include Runway End Safety Area (RESA), owing to which it can be declared as an international airport.
 
He was speaking after inaugurating the 2-day workshop titled “Tabletop Airports and Safety Aspects” organized jointly by the National Institute of Technology Karnataka (NIT-K) and Mangalore Airport Diamond Jubilee Celebration Committee at NITK.

He also said that the airport has a runway of 8000ft and 205 acres of land has been alloted by the state government for its extension to 9500ft. The total estimated cost for the extension of runway, construction of part parallel taxiway and link taxiway is Rs 51 crores and the proposal is likely to put up to AAI board for approval, he said.

The new air traffic control tower is under construction and will be ready in 18 months, he said and added that there are plans to convert the old terminal building for international and domestic cargo operation.

Speaking about the aviation industry, he said that it is growing steadily, accounting for approximately 1.7 percent of world GDP with more than US$1.1 trillion turnover. Around 25 percent of manufactured goods are being transported by air, he said.

Airports Authority of India, Southern Region, Regional Executive Director D Devaraj said that at present Mangalore Airport can handle around 320 type Airbus of aircraft. AAI always pays more attention to safety. Every airport will have an annual study, surveillance study and technical study, he said.
Speaking on the occasion, Sandeep Sancheti, the director of NIT-K, said that Mangalore is one among few cities having all types of transport modes such as water, rail, air, and road.