Seaplane to land in Goa today

Commercial operations to begin in September

May 22, 2015 11:56 pm | Updated May 23, 2015 09:00 am IST - PANAJI:

The nine-seater seaplane will make its maiden test flight from Dabolim airportand land in river Mondovi on Saturday. File Photo:Shashi Ashiwal

The nine-seater seaplane will make its maiden test flight from Dabolim airportand land in river Mondovi on Saturday. File Photo:Shashi Ashiwal

Goa is all set for the pulsating moment as the first amphibian seaplane lands in its river waters on Saturday morning.

The 9-seater Seaplane for joy rides to be launched in Goa in the coming tourism season will take its maiden test flight from Dabolim airport and land in river Mondovi.

Goa is the second State after Maharashtra where the amphibian seaplane will be launched.

Commercial operations will begin in September and several routes will be identified for the same in consultation with Fisheries Department, Captain of Ports and Goa Coastal Police to ensure the operations do not affect the marine eco-system, fishing activities, inland water transportation and water sports operations.

Goa Tourism had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Maritime Energy Heli AIR Services Pvt. Ltd.(MEHAIR) to launch seaplane services in the State.

The amphibian aircraft services will be owned and operated by Mehair Pvt. Ltd. with support from Goa Tourism and Government of Goa.

The Goenchea Ramponkarancho Ekvott (GRE), body spearheading the cause of traditional fishermen on Friday attacked the government and the Tourism Minister Dilip Parulekar for going ahead with the sea plane project.

“In spite of full assurance from the former Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar and both the current MPs from the State, the Tourism Department is out to finish the traditional fishermen of Goa by bringing in these anti-fishermen projects”, GRE president Agnelo Rodrigues said on Friday.

The Joint Secretary of GRE, Olencio Simoes, said that every time a fix-wing aircraft lands or cruises on the water surface for take-off, it will generate waves that will affect marine life.

Fishing or related activity will be prohibited in this area thus severely affecting the livelihood of traditional fishermen, he said.GRE is also apprehensive that in the case of an oil leak from these aircrafts, the environmental impact can be disastrous to marine life.

Air, noise and water pollution from this flight service would disrupt the entire ecosystem and cause damage to the flora and fauna of the State, warned GRE.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.