Fogged out? AI won’t divert, will return to airport of origin

New Delhi: If fog shuts out Delhi airport this winter, Air India pilots will not be allowed to divert flights to the closest, and most preferred, domestic destinations — Jaipur and Lucknow. The national carrier has clarified that an in-principle decision has been taken by the airline to return flights to the airports of their origin in such a situation. This, officials say, is part of the airline’s preparedness to deal with fog this season.
International flights bound for Delhi will be diverted to Mumbai if the situation arises.
“In case of an emergency, Jaipur and Lucknow happen to be the closest airports where Delhi-bound flights get diverted. But now we are not allowed to divert to Jaipur,” a senior Air India pilot said.
An airline official, however, said that at times of fog-related congestion in Delhi, diverting flights to other domestic destinations has not been helping matters. “During fog-related congestion, Delhi air traffic control can handle only 22 flight arrivals per hour. So if a Delhi-bound flight is diverted to Jaipur or Lucknow, the problem of transporting these passengers back to Delhi becomes an issue. These airports are also very small as compared to Delhi, and cannot handle more than four aircraft at a time. There are infrastructure-related constraints,” the official said.
07/12/10 Indian Express

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Categories: Air India Dec 2010, Airports Dec 2010