In the absence of a lobby and a waiting area for private passengers because of a delayed construction plan of a new terminal at the Juhu aerodrome, the Airport Authority of India (AAI) has approached the Oil and Natural Gas Corpo-ration to use its fully furnished terminal for the same.
Currently, private passengers, mainly corporates, who charter helicopter services, board the flight with virtually no security check at the aerodrome. They enter through the main gate and directly head to one of the several hangars near the airport boundary and board the flight.
The ONGC, on the other hand, has a well-equipped terminal along with 114 CISF men since it controls around 80 per cent of the helicopter flights from the aerodrome for ferrying men and equipment to the off-shore oil rig Bombay High. “The new terminal building plan worth `50 crore is anyway delayed since the contractor had backed out. It will be another two years until the building is erected since the construction has not even started and only the survey is underway. In the absence of these facilities, we can use the ONGC terminal where there is not only infrastructure, but also security,” said a senior AAI official requesting anonymity.
Airport director M. Yadgiri confirmed the development but refused to comment.