The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and Indigo Airlines achieved a major feat on Wednesday with the successful completion of the validation flight of the Required Navigation Performance with Authorization Required (RNP AR) procedure at Kathmandu Airport. For the first time, a flight has been validated by the DGCA at an airport that is famous for its challenging terrain and environmental conditions.
Implementing precision and safety in challenging terrains
The RNP AR approach provides enhanced navigation guidance for airports with the risk of difficult landing conditions such as those present at Kathmandu Airport. During the validation process, an Indigo A320 aircraft, designated as VT-ISQ was successfully able to implement the RNP AR approach with utmost precision and reliability.
Benefits of RNP AR Procedure
There are numerous advantages of the RNP AR approach, which will step up the safety level because of more precision, by adopting a more stable path and making operations more efficient. It also reduces the need for multiple step-downs related to non-precision approaches and lowers the landing minima. Executing this approach will also help financial savings by less fuel consumption and lower down crew and flight time losses.
This achievement highlights the DGCA’s commitment to enhancing aviation safety standards and operational capability. It will also set a benchmark for other operators to follow in one of the world’s riskier terrains. The validation flight was conducted in the presence of an all-women team of inspectors both from the DGCA and the Civil Authority of Nepal inspecting the operation.
(With ANI inputs)