45 early birds under scanner change course

Mumbai: Departure schedules of as many as 45 flights of four airlines have been reworked to ensure that they adhere to their allotted timings for arrival at the city airport.
The development comes close on the heels of a crackdown by the ministry of civil aviation and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to rein in airlines manipulating their block time (the number of hours taken by a flight between the place of origin and destination).
The DGCA had zeroed in on 70 flights that were found landing at the Mumbai airport earlier than their scheduled arrival time. "These flights had not adjusted their departure time from the city of origin in order to stick to the slots allotted to them for arrival here. They were arriving early and congesting the airspace during peak hours," an official said, adding that 25 more flights still need to rework their schedules.
According to the official, the move will help reduce delays drastically during peak traffic hours. "Currently, delays between 9.30 pm to 11 pm can extend up to more than an hour. However, with these flights landing on time, delays are likely to reduce by 20-30 minutes," he pointed out.
"It is a challenge to handle flight movements sanctioned during the peak hours. To add to it, those which are not scheduled also jam the skies and compound the problem,'' said a senior airport official.
23/04/11 Chinmayi Shalya/Times of India

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Categories: Airports Apr 2011