Delhi’s Jan fog hit Mumbai flights hard

Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGI) recorded 172 hours of fog in January making it the highest since 2003. Almost half of all domestic air travel in India takes place between Delhi and Mumbai,over 600 flights a week on an average,with minimum passenger load factor of 75-80%.

“The airlines have been losing money because of diversions and cancellations. If there is a cancellation,we need to accommodate outstation guests and if there is a long queue to land or if our flights are diverted we incur additional losses of at least 5-6 lakh rupees every additional hour till the aircraft is operational,” said a senior official of a leading private carrier. “Eventually you face passengers’ ire as well,” he added.

A spokesperson from the Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL) confirmed the figures but individual reasons for cancellation of all the flights could not be ascertained.

“In these situations you really can’t blame anybody,” said a senior Kingfisher pilot. “It’s not that we cannot land at Delhi airport,which is equipped with ILS CAT IIIB. But the real problem we face is when we have to taxi our aircraft to the bay. There is absolutely no visibility. The airside of Mumbai and Delhi airports are so crowded that aircraft miss each other by barely seven-eight feet in the apron area,” he added.