Scindia announces more steps to deal with fog-related disruptions

DGCA had issued a set of SOPs after Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said all stakeholders are working round-the-clock to minimise fog-related disruptions

Dense fog covers the Indira Gandhi International Airport on a cold winter morning, in New Delhi on January 16, 2024. | Photo Credit: ANI

Amid fog-related flight disruptions, the Civil Aviation Ministry has asked Delhi, Mumbai and four other metro airports to report incidents three times a day and these airports as well as airlines will also set up 'war rooms' to address passenger issues.

Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on January 16 said it will also be ensured that there is sufficient CISF manpower availability round-the-clock at the airports.

In the last few days, there were incidents of a passenger assaulting an IndiGo pilot at the Delhi airport and passengers of an IndiGo flight sitting on the tarmac of the Mumbai airport amid long flight delays due to fog.

Against this backdrop, aviation regulator DGCA on Monday issued a set of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) after Mr. Scindia said all stakeholders are working round-the-clock to minimise fog-related disruptions.

In a post on X on Tuesday, Mr. Scindia said the Ministry has sought "incidence reporting thrice daily for all the six metro airports."

Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Chennai and Kolkata are the metro airports.

'War rooms' will be set up by airports and airline operators at the six metro airports to address any issues with regard to passenger inconvenience with immediacy.

Also, sufficient CISF manpower availability will be ensured round-the-clock, Mr. Scindia said.

With respect to the Delhi airport, the Minister said runway RWY 29L has been made CAT III operational on Tuesday.

Passengers await at the Indira Gandhi International Airport on a cold winter morning, in New Delhi on January 16, 2024. Several flights get delayed and a few get cancelled due to fog in several parts of the country. | Photo Credit: ANI

The operationalisation of RWY 10/28 as CAT III at the airport will be done after re-carpeting work.

Currently, three out of the four runways at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) in the national capital are operational.

IGIA, the country's largest airport, has four runways — RW 09/27, RW 11R/29L, RW 10/28 and RW 11L/29R. Out of them, three runways, including CAT III-compliant RW 11L/29R, are operational.

Mr. Scindia also said the implementation of DGCA directives and SOPs will be monitored and reported regularly.