IGI to enforce DGCA order on parking bay schedule

New Delhi: Fed up with the poor punctuality record of airlines, the directorate general of civil aviation (DGCA) recently issued an order which mandates that aircraft push back from the parking bays at least 15 minutes before their scheduled departure time or lose their slot in the queue. The order was implemented in Mumbai on July 19 when a whopping 86 flights had to be rescheduled. Now it is Delhi's turn to see how efficient its flights are. Sources say that the order is likely to be enforced in the capital by next week.
Airports Authority of India (AAI) officials said that Delhi and Mumbai were facing massive congestion-related delays, specially with traffic at both airports having gone up recently. "The schedule for each hour is so packed that there is no scope for delays. Even if a couple of flights delay in taking off, it would mess the entire schedule. For that, airlines need to follow a strictly disciplined schedule,'' said an official.
In Mumbai, the first day of implementation of the order saw 86 flights delayed by 30 minutes to 1 hour 45 minutes after they lost their original place in the line-up for departure. On the second day, the number came down to 48 and on the third day it was down to 39. Thursday saw about 25 flights delayed after being rescheduled.
Airlines have already started preparing for the change in Delhi. Kingfisher and Indigo are closing their check-in counters 5 to 15 minutes earlier than usual so that flights can be boarded with sufficient time to spare. Other airlines are likely to follow suit specially when DGCA chief Nasim Zaidi said that the order would be implemented in Delhi as soon as possible.
23/07/10 Neha Lalchandani/Times of India

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Categories: Airports Jul 2010