Preventing crashes a costly option

Mangalore crash passengers could have lived had the airport installed engineered material arrestor system (EMAS) which stops a plane from overshooting the runway, claims an expert.

However, Airport Authority of India (AAI) says that getting an EMAS at critical Indian airports is a costly option.

According to aviation expert captain Mohan Ranganathan EMAS is the need of the hour particularly at airports like Mangalore, Calicut and even Mumbai. “Though expensive, EMAS can prevent damage to the aircraft and loss of human lives in case of an overrun,” says Ranganathan.

“It is essential in airports like Mangalore and Calicut where the terrain is tough. Even Mumbai airport needs an EMAS as it is surrounded by slums from all sides. In case an aircraft overshoots runway in Mumbai, it will be a very big disaster compared to what happened in Mangalore,” he says.

What is an EMAS?
The EMAS is a block of crushable and light-weight concrete placed at the end of a runway. When an aircraft overshoots the runway and moves into this zone, it slows down as the wheels churn up blocks of crushable concrete thereby halting it.

The EMAS is a stop-away area at the end of runway and requires minimum 90 meters length. There are even 1,000-m stop-away areas in the US. It is capable of stopping bigger planes like Boeing 747 and 767. For instance, in January 2010, a Polar Air B747 cargo jet landed on an icy runway at JFK airport, New York. It slid off the end and was stopped by the EMAS system with minimal damage to the aircraft and no injury to anyone.

AAI says not feasible
AAI says since EMAS is expensive, it would wait till the system becomes economical.

“The EMAS is very costly due to a single vendor situation. There is only one company that manufactures it. The firm won’t share the technology with others, and hence the Rs25-crore price tag. If the price ever comes down to 1/10th of the current cost, then only we can have it in India,” says VP Agarwal, chairman, AAI.

“We have provided low-cost sand arrestor barriers at airports. They were there even in Mangalore,” he said.

According to a senior captain from Air India even drag chutes can do the job of stopping the plane from overshooting the runway.

“French company Sud Caravelle had aircraft which had drag chutes. The chutes would open up after the plane landed and would slow it down thereby reducing the chances of overrun,” he says.