Delhi, Mumbai and four other metro airports have been asked by the civil aviation ministry to report about incidents three times a day amid the ongoing fog-related flight disruptions. Besides this, the airports and airlines have been asked to set up ‘war rooms’ to address passenger issues. Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Chennai and Kolkata are the metro airports in question here.
What has the ministry said?
On Tuesday, Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia emphasized that there will be a continuous presence of adequate CISF personnel at airports around the clock.
Yesterday, the DGCA issued a set of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) amid a surge in the cases of disruptions.
In a post on X on Tuesday, Scindia said the ministry has sought “incidence reporting thrice daily for all the six metro airports.”
Airports and airline operators will establish “war rooms” at the six metro airports to promptly address any passenger inconvenience issues. Additionally, Jyotiraditya Scindia mentioned that there will be a continuous presence of ample CISF manpower round-the-clock.
Scindia also mentioned that the adherence to DGCA directives and SOPs will be consistently monitored and reported.
Regarding the Delhi airport, the minister announced that runway RWY 29L attained CAT III operational status on Tuesday. After the completion of re-carpeting work, the airport will proceed with the operationalisation of RWY 10/28 as CAT III.
Presently, three of the four runways at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) in the national capital are in operation. IGIA, the largest airport in the country, is equipped with four runways—RW 09/27, RW 11R/29L, RW 10/28, and RW 11L/29R. Among these, three runways, including the CAT III-compliant RW 11L/29R, are currently operational.