Pilots of at least three flights, including one operated by market leader IndiGo, lied to air traffic controllers about being short on fuel to get priority landing at an airport, according to an investigation by the country’s aviation safety regulator.
The incident occurred on November 30, when pilots of an IndiGo plane radioed traffic controllers at Kolkata airport the jet was running out of fuel and it should be allowed to land, bypassing more than half a dozen aircraft waiting in queue. An Air India Ltd. aircraft, ahead of IndiGo, also claimed the same after listening to the conversation, while another plane operated by SpiceJet Ltd. also followed suit, the investigation showed.
None of the aircraft ran the risk of an empty tank, and all of them had enough jet fuel to fly to an alternative airport and attempt at least two landings, or to circle around Kolkata for half an hour, a senior official at the Directorate General of Civil Aviation told reporters in New Delhi, asking not to be identified citing rules.
Airport congestion is increasingly becoming a serious issue in India — the fastest growing major aviation market in the world — as carriers struggle to maintain their on-time performance, a key selling point to low-cost customers. The average time an aircraft spends circling before it can land in Mumbai during peak hours is about 45 minutes to an hour, versus 25 minutes for Singapore and zero for Qatar, according to Dubai-based Martin Consulting LLC.
09/12/16 Bloomberg/The Indian Express
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The incident occurred on November 30, when pilots of an IndiGo plane radioed traffic controllers at Kolkata airport the jet was running out of fuel and it should be allowed to land, bypassing more than half a dozen aircraft waiting in queue. An Air India Ltd. aircraft, ahead of IndiGo, also claimed the same after listening to the conversation, while another plane operated by SpiceJet Ltd. also followed suit, the investigation showed.
None of the aircraft ran the risk of an empty tank, and all of them had enough jet fuel to fly to an alternative airport and attempt at least two landings, or to circle around Kolkata for half an hour, a senior official at the Directorate General of Civil Aviation told reporters in New Delhi, asking not to be identified citing rules.
Airport congestion is increasingly becoming a serious issue in India — the fastest growing major aviation market in the world — as carriers struggle to maintain their on-time performance, a key selling point to low-cost customers. The average time an aircraft spends circling before it can land in Mumbai during peak hours is about 45 minutes to an hour, versus 25 minutes for Singapore and zero for Qatar, according to Dubai-based Martin Consulting LLC.
09/12/16 Bloomberg/The Indian Express
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