Private airplane owners fly higher than DGCA limits

Preksha Malu, Agency: dna

Every week, Ammeet Agarwal soars above Mumbai, its ribbons of traffic, its rat race, its myriad laws, enjoying the niche pleasure of flying his own plane. Agarwal, president of Supreme aviation company, owns three planes and is accompanied by his brother, his cousins and other aircraft owners on his tours. Agarwal, 26, said: "We took a spin around the city a fortnight ago as we had maximum visibility that day. We usually fly out four times a month, and go to aerodromes around the state, maybe for a quick breakfast or lunch."
The youngest flyer is 24 and the eldest is 60. They are engineers, surgeons, real estatebusinessmen, among others. Prasad Bhat always wanted to fly as a child but didn't want to be a commercial pilot. By dint of owning a successful engineering company, he could realise his dreams in 2011. He joined hands with like-minded people who wanted to fly for pleasure, and they bought a plane together. A hobby plane costs around Rs80 lakh to 90 lakh.
Bhat, 52, said: "We struggled a lot with regulations and permissions but it came through. Today, we own two planes, a Cessna 172 and a (Diamond) DA40. We have gone up to Lakshadweep, Shimla and to southern airports. We mostly travel on Saturdays and Sundays. There is little awareness in India about the concept of private pilots who fly for fun." Bhat received a licence from Carver aviation in Baramati, and flies on at least 150 days a year.
Pune-based Vishwas Bhise, who deals in real estate, piloted a glider in the '80s and has flown a plane since 2009. Bhise feels that there is a growing interest in hobby flying despite the tough regulations. "The DGCA (directorate general of civil aviation) has the same rules for commercial and private airplanes. They need be flexible as we're not doing it commercially. Some of their rules are not practical and they still don't understand the concept of hobby flying. There are so many unused aircrafts and we can innovate if given an opportunity," said Bhise who co-owns a plane with Bhat.

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