The India Scene

Mystery of Crash at Bajpe International Airport, India
By Suhas Dighe

22nd May 2010, 0605 hr. An Air India Express Flight IX812 arrived Bajpe International Airport near the Southern City of Mangalore, India. The aircraft (Twin engine Boeing 737-800) had taken off from Dubai about three and half hours earlier and had an uneventful journey over the Arabian Sea. The flight was carrying 166 souls including the crew. The weather at Bajpe was an overcast sky but no rain, visibility a good 6 Kilometers. The aircraft approached runway 24 and was cleared to land.

Something went terribly wrong with that landing. The information about that landing is confusing but it appears that the aircraft overshot the touchdown point by 2000 feet and tried to go around. The runway has a length of 8000 feet and an overshoot area of 90 meters after which there is nothing. The runway is on top of a plateau at 300 feet above sea level and there are gorges 200 to 300 feet totally surrounding it, hence called a tabletop runway. At the end of the overshoot area is an array of antennas [8 of them] which constitute the localizer component of the Instrument Landing System. after the array, right on the edge is short boundary wall. The aircraft hit the leftmost localizer antenna, then the boundary wall and dropped into the valley. It broke up on the way down and exploded into huge ball of fire. It is not yet known, if the aircraft was already airborne at this spot. There were only 8 survivors who had a miraculous escape, some of them were thrown out before fire and others managed to exit after the aircraft finally stopped. The Cockpit Voice Recorder and the Flight Data Recorder have been recovered but the information in it is still not processed.

While the TV channels were covering the site round the clock after the crash and were busy interviewing many, aviation experts, officials of the DGCA (Director General of Civil Aviation), pilots among them. Many a graphic simulations were presented but only added to confusion (wrong runway shown; conversation between the aircraft and the Air Traffic Control using non standard terminology which indicated that the information was hearsay).

Some of the facts are as under:

• The aircraft was new with the state of the art technology.
• The pilots were quite experienced, including experience to land a 737 on the marginal runway.
• They were well rested before the flight.
• 8000 feet is considered quite adequate to operate a 737 on this runway.
• Runway slopes downwards from the beginning to end of the runway by about 20 feet.
• Runway was dry.
• Weather conditions were not critical (visibility, cloud ceiling and the wind velocity).
• Decision Height on a Category I ILS approach is 200 feet.
• A 737 can not abort landing and go around below 300 feet above ground level. It is then committed to land. This is as per an experienced pilot interviewed.

What is yet to be ascertained and may have a bearing on the accident is:

• Was ILS serviceable?
• When was it last calibrated in other words how reliable it was?
• Was the approach made with the help of ILS?
• An ILS assisted approach should have brought the aircraft 200 feet from the beginning of the runway and not 2000 feet ahead of touch down point as is alleged. So what happened if ILS assisted approach was made?
• Were the recommended approach speeds maintained?
• Did aircraft attempt overshoot and if so at what height the overshoot procedure was initiated?

Some answers will come from the CVR and the FDR. Readings of power settings as read from FDR, can tell if the aircraft was in a landing configuration or was going around. This will take weeks since FDR decoding is being done in the USA. Tapes of dialogue between the aircraft and the Air Traffic Control will be immensely useful too.

There was a PIL [Public Interest Litigation] that was filed by a Non Government Organization called ESG. This petition had objected strongly the new runway project and had feared fetal accidents because of the table top nature of the terrain if undertaken. Ironically this accident is like a textbook accident exactly as predicted in this petition. This petition was dismissed by all successive courts including the Supreme Court on assurances by the authorities [DGCA] that all the risks and possible fallouts have been taken into account while sanctioning the project.

However hue and cry about the runways not having adequate overshoot/undershoot areas is rather misplaced. There are so many airfields around the world which have marginal parameters in terms of runway length and clearances around. Old Hong Long airport, Gibraltar, Port Blair, Kulu, Leh, Silchar to name few. At Port Blair a hill blocks pilot’s view of the runway on the finals. He has to pull up to negotiate the hill and dive immediately thereafter to see the runway and adjust power settings. Silchar runway is short and has hills before and after the runway, Leh has only one approach direction for landing and take off. But still they are in use. Kulu airfield is a table top runway like one at Bajpe airport. Long runways on a flat terrain, with adequate overshoot, undershoot areas and state of the art electronic aids etc is desirable but when such things are not available then our flying techniques have to be smart with carefully assessed risk factors that will determine what type of aircraft can operate on a particular airfield and with what limitations and precautions. A procedure called screening of a pilot whenever he is landing for the first time on airfields like Bajpe by an experienced pilot who demonstrates the new pilot all the peculiarities of the airfield is followed all over the world.

So, operations will go on not withstanding the tragic events. Any lessons? The enquiry must establish what went wrong and then make recommendations.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Suhas_Dighe

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Rajasthan India - An Ultimate Tourism ExperianceBy Yogesh Kumar

Rajasthan is the one of the most attractive destinations in India for both domestic and International tourists. About 6 million people visit the State every year of which 9% are foreign tourists. On an average a domestic tourist spends Rs. 400 per day and an Iternational tourist spends Rs. 800 a day (M/s. A. F. Ferguson & Company). Rajasthan being poorly endowed in terms of water availability depend on the non-farm sector to develop its economy and improve the quality of life of its people. Hence the development of tourism has great relevance.

Amazing legends of heroism and romance still resound from its equally amazing architecture, that still stands to narrate its tale of a bygone era. The magic of Rajasthan is unequalled in the world for its heritage, culture, safaris, sand dunes and lush green forests with its wildlife. Rajasthan is often expressed as huge open-air museum with relic so well preserved for the travellers and the curious of the day. It is action-packed with outdoors too; take a safari on horses, camels, elephants or even jeeps with the Aravalis - India’s oldest mountain range in the backdrop, or caress your eyes on the sloppy sand dunes, or trail a tiger or just watch birds on wetland. Or you can choose to pamper yourself in the lavish heritage properties. Rajasthan has something for everyone, just choose your activity.

The magic of Rajasthan is unparallel in the world for its heritage, culture, safaris and sand dunes. Rajasthan is the land of Kings. It depicts the story of the great warriors and their chivalry, their romance, glory and tragedy. With invincible forts, magnificent palaces and serene lakes Rajasthan is truly called a land of valiance.

Rajasthan is known for its diversity in terms of natural resources, history and the people. The many forts and palaces, heritage hotels and attraction of travelling on the Palace On Wheels has been a unique selling proportion for tourists coming to the State. Colorful fairs and festivals are also greatly appreciated by visitors. The different ethnic culture of the people has proved to be a major attraction for visitors. The colorful attire of the people is a photographers delight. Today, Rajasthan is the image of India in the eyes of the tourism world. The unique desert environment in Western Rajasthan is a major attraction also. Rajasthan is an exotic destination visited by people interested in seeing something different, visiting unique place and participating in a joyous old culture.

The effort of the Government and Tourism Industry have been to improve the quality of the product and service available to the visiting tourists. This is being attempted by improving the dissemination of information; providing easier access through train, air and road transport; arranging for suitable accommodation; conservation of the Heritage forts, palaces and old monuments; improving the quality of service through Human Resource Development; developing ancillary leisure, entertainment and amusement facilities. With liberalization of the economy the role of the private sector in tourism is expected to grow manifold. The effort is to provide a conductive environment to increase private sector investment in the various joint sector. Some facilities are best developed wholly in the private sector, The effort of the Government of Rajasthan has been to create an investor and market friendly environment. This effort is most manifest in service sector activities like tourism.

As a part of the government effort to make a major thrust in improving the quality of the product and increasing the flow of tourists to the state, a series of measures have been attempted which should logically culminate in evolution of an investment plan for tourism which identifies areas in which investment is expected to come in the Public Sector, Joint Sector and Private Sector.

About the Author: Yogesh is author and designer of the guide area of http://www.rajasthan-india.in. The writer is focusing on tips about “Rajasthan Tour Packages”.

Source: www.isnare.com

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Indian Vedic Astrology by Astroguru

The divine science of Vedic astrology is a wonderful asset to the mankind. It unfolds the uncertainties in life, reduces tensions and enables one to move into the right diection.It deals with various aspects of human life such as health-physical and mental, business, Social status, financial prosperity, name and fame, emotional stability etc.They Indian Vedic astrology has four major constituents which are signs, houses, planets and planetary periods.

Indian (Vedic) astrology is the ancient Indian system of astrology and astronomy. The term derives from the ancient language of the Vedas, Sanskrit, where Jyotishi means light or flame and Ish means God.Jyotish thus means Lord (Ray of the light.Jyotish is variously referred to in English as Hindu astrology, Indian astrology and Vedic astrology.Jyotish is knowledge to use divine light that remove ignorance.

The Vedic system of astrology is one of the six disciplines of vedanga, the auxiliary disciplines of Vedic religion. As such, Jyotish has historically been part of a continues holistic approach to living and an integral practice based on the ancient spiritual tradition of India. The foundation of Jyotish is the notion of bandhu of the Vedas or scriptures, which is the connection between the microcosm and the macrocosm. Its purpose is to offer humanity a means to understand the role and expression of karma in individual and collective life.Indeed,hindus believe that humans have fortune and misfortune in life because of their karma. Many use Jyotish to understand setbacks in life due to the influence of planets and perform religious ceremonies to mitigate or avoid the pain of separation in life.

The practice of Vedic astrology primarily relies on the visible or sidereal zodiac, which is different from the tropical zodiac used in western astrology in that an Ayanamsha adjustment is made for the gradual precession of the vernal equinox. The tropical zodiac is used in Vedic astrology only to compute ascendant (Lagna),although the end result is converted to sidereal lagna.Prediction of weather and related phenomena is traditionally made according to sidereal system, especially through horoscopes for the moment of solar transition into sidereal Nakshatras and signs at ancient center of India(Near Bhopal and Ujjain)or from Meru in Jamboodvioa;but some research scholars are now experimenting with tropical system for predicting the course of nature-as in weathered.

Vedic astrology also includes several nuances sub-systems of interpretation and prediction with unique sacralized elements not found in western astrology, such as its specific system of lunar mansions(called nakshatras,encompassing a pantheon of archetypal deities).The Nakshatras are used by some to pick up auspicious times of day or month for every human activity as well as to provide insight into the motivations and guiding characteristics of human and events coming under their influence.Nakshatra cycles based on the natal placement of the moon or vimshottary periods are developing a reputation in contemporary culture for the accuracy with which they time the events, unfolding conditions in one’s life. When combined with an analysis of planetary transits, significant events in life become predictable.

Indian astrology (Jyotish) is still commonly used to aid in important decisions in life. In Hindu culture, newborns are traditionally named based on their birth Nakshatra, and Indian astrology concepts are pervasive in the organization of the calendar and holidays as well as in many areas of life. Astrology is perceived to be vital in today’s Indian Vedic culture, in making decisions made about Marriage, opening a new business and moving into a new home.

This Indian Astrology and Vedic Horoscope site is brought to you by “The Hermit’s Hut of Vedic Astrology”, an association of renowned and leading astrologers who are devoted by their holy work to eradicate the human being problems through their vast and divine knowledge of the Astrology. Indian astrology

Article Source: KnowAboutYourself.com

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