Govt mulling third party safety audits for choppers

New Delhi, July 18 (UNI) Third party safety audits for helicopters are being considered by the government to remove existing deficiencies, director general for civil aviation Kanu Gohain said today.

''This will cover non-complaint areas and increase overall safety standards,'' he told reporters on the sidelines of an industry seminar.

The draft civil aviation requirements (CAR) in the forthcoming civil aviation policy talks about independent audits for helicopter operations. The idea evoked favourable response from industry experts.

Mr Gohain said the DGCA is also pushing for dedicated air corridors and parking bays for helicopters independent of aircraft operations.

Due to rise in demand from corporate and leisure travellers, the commercial helicopter population in the country has increased to 191 from 109 in 2003. This has prompted many officials to call for heliports and separate air traffic control (ATC) for their operations.

Mr P K Chattopadhyay, former joint DGCA, said the country's first helicopter flight training simulator will be operational here by October. Flysim Pvt Ltd will set up the Frasca machine for single-engine choppers.

A similar facility for twin-engine helicopters will be set up by year-end, said Mr Chattopadhyay.

UNI