Delayed flights end in 'criminal' fuel wastage

Mumbai: Delays during peak traffic hours at Mumbai airport do not just inconvenience passengers. They also cost airlines a bomb. A rough estimate by aviation engineers and pilots shows that at least 105 tonnes of fuel is burnt every day by almost 70 flights while hovering over the airport during two hours of air traffic congestion.
This means that fuel worth approximately Rs 76.78 lakh is wasted daily in between 9.30pm and 11.30pm before these flights get landing clearance. The figure, said airport and airline officials, is of minimum fuel burnt by an Airbus-A320 or a Boeing 777. Bigger aircraft lose almost double the fuel.
TOI spoke to senior commanders and engineers who said that one flight on an average burns 1.5 tonne of fuel to hold over for 30 minutes. At Mumbai airport, almost 70 flights land between 9.30pm and 11.30 pm. In the first 15-20 minutes, the delay is around 20 minutes. By 10pm, it goes up to 30 minutes. At 10.30pm, as more flights come in, the holding time escalates to over 40-50 minutes.
08/08/11 Chinmayi Shalya/Times of India

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Categories: Indian Aviation- In General Aug 2011