Hyderabad: Air India’s Central Training Establishment has finally taken a decision to dismantle the aircraft and take it to its premises, an exercise that ought to have been carried in the first instance.
There were no gas cutters or other equipment with Durga Cranes, which was shifting the exercise. It was only after the accident that the company workers began looking for equipment to dismantle the aircraft.
The aircraft will now be dismantled into five parts and transported. Air India officials will assess the situation after the aircraft is dismantled and take a decision," a senior official from Air India said.
Though CTE and Durga Cranes officials refused to give details, sources said the overall cost of dismantling and transporting the aircraft by road works out to nearly Rs 50 lakh. Dismantling of the aircraft continued late into night and it is expected that it would be transported by Monday morning.
Officials deny giving nod to moving aircraft as whole
It was not clear just who gave the permission to transport an entire aircraft by road, Air India CTE director Soman Atul said they had applied to the Ranga Reddy district collector and all permissions were in place from the southern discom, law and order and traffic police. But the district collector said they had only applied, permission was not given.
“It is true that the Air India CTE management approached us and we forwarded the application to all the departments concerned seeking their response,” Ranga Reddy collector M. Raghunandan Rao said adding that the local tahsildar has been asked to report.
DCP, North Zone, N. Prakash Reddy said they received information only on Saturday about the transporting of the aircraft. ACP (Traffic-I) A. Muthyam Reddy said they were told that permissions were taken at the top level. Discom assistant engineer Suresh said engineers had accompanied the crane.
