Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi experienced a significant interruption and interference due to dense fog and adverse weather conditions on 23rd of January, 2024. The Airport, which typically operates around 1,200 flights take off and landing daily, was forced to delay numerous flights affecting both International and Domestic Travel schedules. The dense fog led to reduced and poor visibility, making it challenging for planes to land between the runway and terminal building and entail increased spacing between landing aircraft.
Accordingly, Delhi Airport Flight Information Display System showed delays in 22 International Departures, 20 International Arrivals, 31 Domestic Arrivals and 46 Domestic Departures. Airlines such as IndiGo and SpiceJet issued travel advisories, alerting passengers to potential disruptions across various cities including Lucknow, Patna, Varanasi, Jammu and Agartala.
The adverse conditions highlighted the need for improved Category III facilities at Indian airports, which allow for landings in low visibility conditions. Currently, several Airports including Delhi, Amritsar, Jaipur, Lucknow, Kolkata and Bangalore are equipped with CAT III technology. However, many others are only CAT I or CAT II compliant, limiting operations during poor visibility and underscoring the urgency for a collaborative effort to enhance these capabilities nationwide.
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