New Delhi: Despite DGCA asking airlines to deploy aircrafts and cabin crew capable of flying in CAT-III B conditions, some airlines continue to flout norms, thereby causing delays and multiple cancellations.
The oversight was discovered by a panel set up by Prabhat Kumar, director general of civil aviation, to make Delhi a zero-diversion airport by next winter. Headed by joint DG, Lalit Gupta, the panel found that airlines such as SpiceJet and Alliance Air ( a subsidy of Air India) are not CAT III-B compliant, which allows planes to land even when visibility is as low as 75m.
"The panel will make CAT III-B mandatory for airlines to get slots during fog. Airlines can either comply or lose passengers to airlines better equipped to fly during fog," said a senior official. The panel came to this conclusion after examining this month's diversion data. The dreadfully foggy night of January 5-6 saw a record 52 diversions. Following this, DGCA asked airlines to fly to Delhi after keeping the weather in mind to avoid being diverted.
20/01/14 Saurabh Sinha/Times of India
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The oversight was discovered by a panel set up by Prabhat Kumar, director general of civil aviation, to make Delhi a zero-diversion airport by next winter. Headed by joint DG, Lalit Gupta, the panel found that airlines such as SpiceJet and Alliance Air ( a subsidy of Air India) are not CAT III-B compliant, which allows planes to land even when visibility is as low as 75m.
"The panel will make CAT III-B mandatory for airlines to get slots during fog. Airlines can either comply or lose passengers to airlines better equipped to fly during fog," said a senior official. The panel came to this conclusion after examining this month's diversion data. The dreadfully foggy night of January 5-6 saw a record 52 diversions. Following this, DGCA asked airlines to fly to Delhi after keeping the weather in mind to avoid being diverted.
20/01/14 Saurabh Sinha/Times of India
