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 The
scene was a few years back and it was election time. A certain
political party needed to charter a plane urgently, for its leader
to fly to various parts of the country for campaigning. None
of the private air operators in Delhi were willing to lend their
flights. A frantic party official calls the 'Orient Flight
School (OFS)' in Chennai and asks whether they could charter
a plane for the party. OFS readily agrees to charter a plane
to the party because of its belief in being a professional organisation.
The professional attitude has certainly helped it and is the major
reason for its growth. The Minister of State for Civil Aviation
Prof Chamanlal Gupta, recently inaugurated the air charter
service and also the maiden flight of Orient Flight's newly acquired
King Air C 90A.
 Orient
Flights, which possesses DGCA approval to operate non-scheduled
aircraft charters is part of the city-based Hindustan Group of
Institutions. Headed by Dr K C G Verghese, the
group has a major interest in the aviation sector and its latest
venture into air charter operations comes with over three decades
of experience in aircraft maintenance and air taxi operations.
Dr Verghese urged the government to speeden up the process of 'opening
up the skies' to more 'private operators'.
The minister while speaking at the launch, stressed on the importance
of small aircrafts like these for the growth of tourism and in providing
accessibility to remote and inaccessible areas. He also mentioned
the government's pro-active decision to promote tourism, such as
liberalising regulations for the operation of tourist charter flights
enabling these flights to land at any Indian airport with customs
and immigration facilities and also removing the limit on the aircraft
size.
 The
addition of the King Air C 90 A bolsters the existing fleet
strength of Orient Flights, which includes five Cessna 152s,
one Cessna 172 and a six-seater Piper Seneca III.
The King Air C 90 A is a turbo prop Beechcraft Aircraft and is capable
of operating at altitudes up to 28,000 feet and can cruise at a
speeds more than 275 miles per hour. The aircraft, which comes equipped
with modern avionics like Auto-Pilot, Weather Radar, GPWS, HF and
Satellite Frequency is perfect for short trips as its runway capabilities
allows one to fly to big cities as well as remote airports where
most jets can't land. The service can be made use of for aerial
surveys, aerial photography, film shootings and election campaigns
for a price of just Rs 45,000/- per hour.
Address: Orient Flights, # 40, G S T Road, St. Thomas
Mount, Chennai 600 016.
Phone: 234 11389, 232 1402
Mobile: 98410 75700
Fax: 234 2170
Website: www.orientflights.com
| Author : Joseph Pradeep Raj R |
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