Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu held a review meeting on Wednesday with various stakeholders to assess fog preparedness. He urged airlines to proactively inform passengers about flight delays and ensure that check-in counters are fully staffed to minimise travel disruptions.
“The preparations for managing visibility-related challenges this winter are moving in the right direction with good progress made in resolving the bottlenecks,” the civil aviation ministry said.
Civil Aviation Secretary Vumlunmang Vualnam, along with senior officials from the Ministry of Civil Aviation, DGCA (Directorate General of Civil Aviation), BCAS (Bureau of Civil Aviation Security), the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), Delhi airport operator DIAL, and airline representatives, participated in the meeting.
On Monday, adverse weather conditions in the national capital led to at least 15 flight diversions and delays of over 100 flights due to severely reduced visibility. Typically, the fog season begins in early December.
As per the release, airlines have assured compliance with DGCA guidelines by deploying CAT II/III-compliant aircraft and pilots at Delhi and other airports likely to be affected by fog.
Delhi airport, the busiest in the country, has three of its four runways equipped with CAT III ILS (Instrument Landing System), enabling flight operations during low-visibility conditions.
CAT II/III compliance allows pilots to operate aircraft safely even in reduced visibility.
The airlines have been asked to “proactively communicate with passengers about potential delays/ cancellations due to visibility issues and to ensure that correct passenger contact information is recorded during ticket booking. The flight has to be cancelled if the delay is exceeding three hours”, the release said.
Ensuring proper passenger facilitation during flight delays and cancellations is a top priority, the minister emphasised during the meeting. Airlines were directed to ensure all check-in counters at airports are fully staffed to minimise inconvenience to passengers.
Delhi airport operator DIAL has been instructed to install LED screens at key locations to provide passengers with real-time updates on visibility conditions.
Additionally, DIAL has been asked to increase the availability of ‘Follow Me’ vehicles to assist aircraft navigation during low-visibility conditions.
(With PTI inputs)