Young Ativ is excited about his first in-flight experience. After collecting his boarding pass and checking-in his baggage he makes his way to aircraft. There a friendly air hostess makes him comfortable in his seat. Ativ then gets ready for his first flight. He listens to the safety instructions carefully, especially about the oxygen mask and life jackets. Ativ now settles down ready for takeoff. But soon there is a call for emergency on board and he is ushered toward the exit and made to slide down an emergency chute even as smoke fills the inside of the aircraft. Ativ is safe back on land now. But Ativ never took off as he was undergoing a simulated flight experience at Delhi’s only Aeroplanet in Dwarka.
In fact, this unique experience has been made possible by Bahadur Chand Gupta, a retired aeronautical engineer who worked for Indian Airlines. His idea was to give underprivileged children a taste of air travel for free in his Dwarka Sector 8 ‘airport’
“I belong to a very small village in Haryana. When I started working for the Indian Airlines, the people from my village wanted to see how an aircraft looks and how it works,” Gupta says. Since it was not possible to take all his people inside an airport and an aircraft, Gupta thought of bringing the experience closer home.
Gupta bought an old Airbus A300 in 2004 which was damaged and beyond economical repair. The airplane is housed within the boundaries of the international airport. Thus, Aeroplanet (India), a museum cum educational picnic spot popped up.
Presently, Aeroplanet (India) welcomes children from schools to take a study tour. The children are taught how to prepare themselves during a flight and what should be done during emergency situations like fire or landing on a river. The children are made to do an emergency exit and trolley landing to give them the real experience. Aeroplanet also takes booking for film shoots and birthday parties. The place is open to people from all the age groups but it caters more towards the interest of the children.
“Initially, the programme was completely free. Even now it continues to remain free for those who are underprivileged,” Gupta points out. But now he has started charging a minimum price of Rs 250 from the general public like the schools or those who come for shoots to keep up with the maintenance costs.
Administrator Ridhi Sehgal is the one who gives lessons on the functioning of an airplane while the children are on board. They are also instructed on how to collect boarding pass and how to check in luggage at the cargo, fasten seatbelts and to use the oxygen masks and life jackets. The curious students with their never-ending questions are also given a tour of the cockpit where Gupta himself explains the mechanisms of the airplane.
“What the children are doing here is a fun activity but it will stay somewhere in their subconscious mind which might help them if they ever face similar situations in real life,” Ridhi says.
Gupta, a resident of Ashok Vihar, remembers how bringing the airplane to Dwarka was a major challenging but fun. The airplane was brought in pieces to Dwarka and then it was assembled.
Ridhi mentions that one will always find children enjoying the campus during weekdays. “Many schools come for a tour or picnic. The campus is always filled with laughter and smiling faces of the children.”
The Aeroplanet invites schools to pay a visit by writing to them. “We write to schools almost once in a year mentioning how students can learn about the mechanisms of a cockpit and real experience of what it takes to fly even as a passenger.
“I learned about how to go inside an airplane and also lots about the cockpit,” a beaming Ativ tells us. Ativ is a student from third grade of PP International School who hopes to be a pilot in the future. Along with all the flying excitement are lots of other outdoor activities which also include magic shows.
“We brought students from grade one, two and three. In the month of November and December they have lessons on transportation so we decided to bring them here to get a practical experience of an airplane” says Shruti Tusir a teacher at PP International School.
The Aeroplanet also trains airline personnel in emergency situations. “This place is also a training centre for aircraft engineers, crew and pilots. It has been recognized as a training centre by the Government of India,” Gupta proudly points out. “The classes are held once a week and a particular course syllabus is followed. We have centres at other places where they learn the theory and come here for practicals,” he adds.
“This plan was my dream and it has only been possible through the support of my wife and my family,” says Gupta. The airline engineer took voluntary retirement at the age of 40 to make his dream Aeroplanet (India) possible.