The Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport will not operate flights between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Thursdays, Saturdays and Tuesdays from February 7 to March 30, owing to major runway repairs. Airport officials said the cancellation of around 230 flights on each of these days would end up disrupting 5,520 flights.
The airport will, however, operate flights during these hours on Thursday, March 21, as it is Holi and workers will not be available. The top three routes affected will be Delhi (33 flights), Goa (18) and Bangalore (16).
On a daily basis, the airport handles 950 incoming flights, and 36 flights every hour. The main runway has the capacity to take up to 50 flights per hour. With the repair work under way, air fares have shot up on the days of closure. “Despite airlines being sounded out in advance, fares to and from Mumbai have shot up by 20%. This is primarily due to last-minute bookings,” travel agent Reji Philip said.
An airport official said, “The work of re-carpeting at the intersection of both runways will be carried out during the closure.” Mumbai International Airport Limited said it has finalised the plan to ensure that international flight operations are least affected. Senior airport officials said re-carpeting and overlay work of the runway intersection is done every seven years and was last done in 2010-11.
Of the two cross runways, the main runway (9 to 27) handles most of the flight operations. The secondary runway, which is shorter, is used when the main runway is not available. The airport undertakes routine runway maintenance work on all Tuesdays and Thursdays from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., when operations are shifted to the secondary runway.
Officials said the information has already been communicated to all stakeholders and airlines, so that passengers are intimated about their flight schedules and status on the days the repair work will be carried out.
