‘Garbage near Jammu airfields potential threat for aircraft-bird collision’

Jammu, Feb 4: Unabated piles of garbage close to the Jammu airfields is not only cause of hygiene concern for humans but it can also risk human lives with high risk of aircraft-bird collision.
Probably nowhere else in the city does garbage pose as a major threat to human lives as in the vicinity of the airport, where it can set off a chain of events leading to aircraft accidents.
Worried over garbage piles near Jammu’s Civil Airport and India Air Force Station, Jammu authorities called a Jammu Airfield Security review meeting at Air Force Station Jammu.
Village Heads of areas in the immediate vicinity of Jammu Airfield along with representatives from concerned civil agencies were called to discuss important areas of concern related to Airfield Security and Aerospace Safety for safe aircraft operations at Jammu.
The meeting was chaired by the Air Commodore G S Bhullar, Air Officer Commanding (AOC) Air Force Station Jammu along with key officials from Airports Authority of India (AAI) and civil agencies.
In the meeting, the AOC highlighted his deep concerns on the need for exercising strict vigil for any untoward occurrences, suspicious activities or drone sighting and requested the stakeholders to promptly report any such abnormal activity.
Moreover the vital issue of maintaining a safe flying environment around the airfield was also brought out wherein he expressed his concern on rampant garbage dumping around Jammu airport and how it is contributing to heightened bird activity and might lead to a potential aircraft accident.
He urged all the village heads and civic agencies to proactively report open dumping in the areas around airfield and initiate steps to educate citizens in their areas towards better waste segregation and disposal for a safer flying environment at Jammu.
Critical areas where rampant garbage disposal continues in the vicinity of Jammu airfield were also brought forward during the meeting with a request to civic agencies to promptly act on such reckless garbage dumping which endangers safe aircraft operations.