More ATCs to help better utilise runways capacity, says DGCA

New Delhi: The country’s aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) plans to maximise utilisation of runways at major airports around the country. In fact, it plans to maximise the utilisation of the two runways at the Indira Gandhi International Airport, asserting that their simultaneous use has not affected flight operations from the national capital region.
“With the increase in number of air traffic controllers, we are planning to increase the utilisation of runways and finally maximise it. There was no drop in flight-handling capacity due to the use of one runway for landing and one for take-off,” directorate general of civil aviation Kanu Gohain told ET.
Earlier, when both the runways were simultaneously used, around 42 flights per hour were being handled and even now, the number remains more or less the same, after flagging off Jet Airways’ maiden flight to Kuwait. According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA) traffic results for September 2007, demand in Asia-Pacific continued its brisk growth of recent months, rising 9.7% in September due to strong economic expansion in the region and fast-developing markets in China and India.
21/01/08 Raja Awasthi/Economic Times

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Categories: Airports Jan 2008