For 5 mins, Delhi’s air traffic control went blind

New Delhi: For almost five tense minutes early last Friday, the entire air traffic over north India vanished from the radar controls of Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport. The blip threw air traffic authorities into a tizzy and heightened fears of possible mishaps for a brief while.
The unacceptable lapse was the result of a faulty radar system that controls air traffic over the region, sources told DNA. The malfunction sent shock waves all around as there is only one approach radar to monitor and control all air traffic movement coming into Delhi.
Radar malfunctions are a very serious business because, when the screen goes blank, air traffic controllers (ATCs) do not know the location of aircraft flying into Delhi. The incident took place around 1 am when the airport handles mostly international flights. At the precise moment, four aircraft were flying in and around Delhi airspace, sources said.
The Director-General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has been informed of the radar failure and the Airports Authority of India (AAI) has initiated an internal investigation.
24/09/07 Yogesh Kumar/Daily News & Analysis

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Categories: Airports Sep 2007, Safety Sep 2007