Flight accident worry leads to curb on sky lanterns around Kolkata airport

KOLKATA: Acting on a written complaint by the Kolkata airport authorities, the Bidhannagar Commissionerate has banned lighting and release of sky lanterns in an approximate 8km area around the airport. Officials had apprehended a serious accident because of the rising number of lanterns in the sky above the airport during Kali Puja-Diwali over the past few years.

The ban that is to be implemented from Tuesday, will be in effect till December 29 and covers areas under Baguiati, airport, NSCBI airport and Narayanpur police station jurisdictions.

The order came into effect after the airport authorities wrote to the cops last year after pilots complained of the presence of thousands of sky lanterns during Diwali and Kali Puja fearing one of them could get sucked into the engine of an aircraft, leading to a major accident.

“It appears that the sky lanterns can cause aircraft accidents if they are sucked into the engine. Additionally, the sky lanterns can cause a fire to break out with serious consequences as oil companies have fuel storage depots on the airport premises. Hence we have decided to implement the ban along with one on the use of laser lights that are beamed towards the sky during the festive season,” said a senior official of Bidhannagar Commissionerate.

Airline officials said the sky lanterns appear harmless, but can be a major hazard for flights that are either landing or taking off. “If the lanterns get sucked into aircraft engines, the thin wires that form the structure can cause major damage to the engine core,” said veteran captain Sarvesh Gupta, who chairs the airlines operators' committee at Kolkata airport.

Over the years, hundreds of sky lanterns have become a popular sight across the city sky, not only during Diwali and Kali Puja, but even during weddings and birthday celebrations. Alarmed at the increasing number of sky lanterns in and around Dum Dum, where arriving and departing planes fly at low altitude, pilots reported the matter.

The matter had figured prominently at the environment committee meeting at Kolkata airport last year with airlines and AAI officials asking Bidhannagar Commissionerate to curb the release of sky lanterns within a specific area around the airport. At this distance, flights coming in to land at Kolkata descended to 3,000ft, the height to which sky lanterns can rise explained an airport official.