Upset with ?several deficiencies? at New Delhi?s Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGI), the British aviation security authorities have threatened to revoke the transhipment security exemption for air carriers operating between New Delhi and the UK.
Apart from domestic carriers Jet Airways, Kingfisher Airlines and Air India, the UK?s flag carrier British Airways and Virgin Atlantic connect the national capital with London.
Industry sources told FE that Transec, the British aviation security authority equivalent to Bureau of Civil aviation Security (BCAS) of India, has set a June 14 deadline to the airport operator to comply with its security standards.
Senior officials of the UK?s department of transport (DFT) had visited the cargo area of the Delhi airport a few weeks ago and found various loopholes in the screening process of the freight meant for export.
Confirming the development, a Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) official said the issue was being addressed.
The IGI airport is operated and managed by DIAL, a joint venture company led by Bangalore-based GMR group. According to the official, security is the sovereign function and the airport operator has no role in this.
?Export cargo is normally screened. Because of alignment of x-ray machines some screened and unscreened cargo had got mixed. We are in the process of rectifying it. By the mid of this month the issue would be completely addressed,? the official said wishing not to be named.
Following terror threats in the skies countries are globally enhancing the security standards. Besides beefing up security parameters in the passenger area of the airport, efforts are being made to thoroughly screen each and every freight loaded on the aircraft.
?Countries are taking measures to tighten the screening in cargo area. India’s screening level is, however, higher compared to other countries,? the DIAL official said.
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) had in 2008 threatened to downgrade India to category II status under its International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) programme. The country, however, retained its category I status after it took several measures to comply with the aviation safety norms required by International Civil Aviation Organisation.