Airbus 310 maiden landing in Mangalore on September 28

While the Mangaloreairport awaits to get International Airport-tag officially,
it goes one step closer to achieve this desired status by hosting the heaviest among the medium to long range twin-engine jet airliner 'Airbus 310'.

For the very first time, the airport will be handling an airplane that has an all up weight
of 1.44 lakh kilograms. Speaking to Deccan Herald, Mangalore Airport Director M
R Vasudeva says that the maximum all up airplane weight handled by the airport so far
was 70,000 kgs.

The Air India's Airbus 310, taking off to Medina on September 28 from Bajpe
Airport will be a new achievement.

The flight will operate from September 28 to October 2, as a part of the Haj operations. In addition to the flight crew, this aircraft can accommodate up to 220 passengers on-board, he informed.

"We are arranging for ground handling equipment from Chennai to suit the prerequisite
of this aircraft. The equipment will arrive soon. We will also upgrade the airport
emergency service to Category 8. Till now, two fire engines arebeing used to operate.

With Category 8, we shall have three fire engines on active duty," says Vasudeva.
At present, the length of the Mangalore Airport runway is 2.45 kilometre. There is a need
to have an extension of 500 meters for the heavier airplanes to take off.

"We are waiting for the authorities concerned to grant permission and take up the
work," he adds.

The Mangalore to Medina flight will land at 10.20 am and
depart at 11.30 am. As many as 1030 passengers will leave from Mangalore for the Haj
trip, he added.