Second innings calling: Three more ‘retired’ aircraft roll out of airport on jumbo trucks
Times of India | 5 April 2025
Kolkata: Following a fresh auction, three more aircraft have rolled out of the airport on 18-wheeled jumbo trucks, embarking on a journey to north Indian cities. They are all set to be turned into restaurants, film shooting sets, installations at city landmarks, amusement parks, and innovative office cabins.
The aircraft fuselages were bought by a Delhi-based company. Last year, five such fuselages were transported from Kolkata during this time of the year by the same firm, Moni Ji Enterprise. This year, the company bought three more fuselages, all Airbus A319 aircraft.
While one of the plane shells was wheeled out of the airport in Jan this year, another was taken out last week. The third and final one was wheeled out in the early hours of Thursday.
"One of the aircraft was sent to Meerut in Uttar Pradesh, and another was sent to Behror in Rajasthan. The one that left the airport on Thursday is being brought to our godown in Delhi," said Jaswinder Singh, the managing director of the firm.
Singh said they developed a niche in sourcing, transporting, and reassembling out-of-service aircraft, which are then redesigned to serve as distinctive venues such as restaurants and office spaces. "In the last nine years, we bought 25 aircraft from Kolkata, Coimbatore, Chennai, and other places," Singh said. Looking ahead, the firm is set to expand its footprint with two upcoming aviation-themed dining experiences in Goa and Sonipat.
According to Air India officials, the Airbus A319 aircraft were stationed in Kolkata following retirement. The narrow-body A319 aircraft was added to the fleet of former carrier Indian Airlines in 2005.
Airport officials said after the fuselages were taken out, only two planes now remain next to the hangar: one decommissioned A319, which was later reused as a cargo aircraft by India Post, and another ATR aircraft that was damaged beyond repairs following an accident at the airport.
"The clearance of the fuselages will help in the airport expansion and will also prevent accidents during natural calamities like storms and heavy rains," said an airport official.
During the transportation, the landing gears, engines, tail, wheels, and the nose of the aircraft are dismantled and carried separately. When the third aircraft was taken out on Thursday, it created some traffic chaos on Jessore Road. The video and photographs went viral, prompting airport authorities to issue a clarification.
"It is a standard practice for airports to facilitate the arrival of decommissioned aircraft for dismantling and recycling in an environmentally responsible manner. To prevent inconvenience to public and to ensure normal aircraft operations remain unaffected, the airport operator has chosen for the removal of obsolete aircraft at night," an airport spokesperson said.