Pvt plane owners seek ministry help to reclaim space

MUMBAI: Mumbai's billionaires are in a bind and fear their wings will be clipped soon as an order by the Adani Group-promoted Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL), issued in January, will bar them from parking their private aircraft at the busy Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) after July 31, as the space will be used for the airport’s expansion.

- Ateeq Shaikh

With the deadline pressing close, they have been represented by the Business Aircraft Operators Association (BAOA) that has approached the Ministry of Civil Aviation, seeking cancellation of the order and directing the operator of Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) to allot space, failing which they will be left with no space within India’s financial capital.

BAOA claims, that their parking permits at CSMIA will be withdrawn starting July 31 was communicated to them through a letter in January, as MIAL is looking to redevelop the asset and were promised space at the NMIA, which has not fructified as it subsequently came to light that NMIA and CSMIA - both promoted by the Ahmedabad-based Adani Group -- operate as separate bodies.