DGCA clears US plane8217;s exit

AHMEDABAD, MARCH 31: Finally, Garry C J Cooper, pilot of the private American aircraft, detained here by the civil aviation authorities s...

AHMEDABAD, MARCH 31: Finally, Garry C J Cooper, pilot of the private American aircraft, detained here by the civil aviation authorities since March 17, got the clearance on Wednesday from the Director-General of Civil Aviation to leave India. But the whole affair has left him embittered.

He had briefly visited the airport around 8 pm to inspect the aircraft but strictly refused to get photographed by The Indian Express lensman. However, he said, 8220;I have already been harassed too much. I don8217;t want to speak further.8221;

Choosing not to blame anyone, Cooper said, 8220;Probably fate is responsible for whatever happened.8221; He said he had not made up his mind yet whether to fly over India again and refused to reveal what precautions he would take if he needed to fly over the country in future.

After getting the clearance, Cooper chose to go to Dubai after getting the aircraft refuelled at Mumbai.

The aircraft was detained here for carrying 8220;a high quality strip camera for surveying land8221; withoutdisclosing this to the civil aviation authorities.

Experts from Indian Space Research Organisation, who examined the camera, reportedly told the investigating agencies that it was 8220;a metric quality camera, with a large format of more than 240 mm, and could be used for various purposes.8221;

While investigation continued, the blue-white Alpha Charlie-6 Tango twin-engine aircraft remained parked at the airport, with a police jeep nearby, and its two-member crew remained incommunicado at Hotel Sofitel Ummed, near the airport.

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The aircraft belongs to a British company, Cooper Aerial Survey, and has an American registration number NV-71-E. The crew includes navigator J M Condong, an Australian woman.

The aircraft was on its way to Karachi from Bangkok, via Calcutta and Nagpur, when it landed at the airport for refuelling. After taking off from Calcutta, the aircraft had vanished from radar screens after it was last spotted by the Jamshedpur ATC.

When officials from Airport Authority of India AAIinspected the aircraft at Ahmedabad, they found that it was fitted with a camera. Experts from ISRO, including Director A K S Gopalan, were called to identify the equipment and the purpose for which it could be used.

In his statement to AAI officials, Cooper had stated that the camera was disconnected and non-serviceable. He said that he had to make a technical landing at Ahmedabad for refuelling as fuel consumption of the aircraft had increased due to strong winds.