Flights at Chennai too chose slot over passengers for on-time departure

Chennai: Airlines are now forced to pick and choose between passengers and flying slots after Chennai airport introduced on-time departures from the beginning of this month. And in most of cases, passengers are left behind, as the slot is dearer for an airline to miss.
As per the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) man-date, airlines should close their check-in counters 45 minutes before department and board passengers more than half-an-hour before departure. Violators will loose their slot to fly, pushing them to the tail end of a sequence of flights waiting for take-off.
Flights have started to depart on time from Chennai airport when the on-time performance system was introduced mid-August. The system has forced VIPs, who usually rush in at the last minute, to come well in time to the airport, said an official.
However, airlines are struggling to prevent no show' passengers because check-in counters are closed early and passen-gers are boarded early. Usually, one or two passengers do not turn up to board a flight after getting the boarding pass.
Passengers are getting used to the system, but ground staff have to make repeated boarding calls for passengers who remain absent.
30/09/10 Times of India

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Categories: airports Sep 2010