Specially-Trained Pilots To Deal With Extreme Fog Issue At Delhi Airport: Scindia

Pic courtesy The Times of India

New Delhi: Dense fog has been sending flight schedules to and from Delhi totally haywire for the last few days.

Dozens of flights have been diverted and many more delayed due to poor visibility in and around the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport here.

So much so that the Central government has been forced to take notice. Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said on Friday that his ministry is coordinating with the airport and airlines to put in place measures to deal with the issue.

Scindia said the fog issue is generally a “transitory phenomenon”, but the situation has been slightly unprecedented this year.

“Fog is an issue that we encounter 15-20 days every year… This year, there has been unprecedented fog for the last three or four days. We are coordinating with all the airlines to make sure that they have CAT II and CAT III-trained pilots during fog hours, thereby easing congestion,” Scindia told PTI.

CAT II and III requirements pertain to operating flights in conditions of low visibility.

The Civil Aviation minister, who is keeping a close watch on the fog situation, said other measures are also being put in place, including monitoring congestion at a landing airport so that take-off is not allowed if there is no direct routing.

“We are putting in place all those measures between airports and airlines.. It is slightly unprecedented in terms of density of the fog, but it is a transitory phenomenon,” Scindia added.

As many as 58 flights, the majority of them operated by domestic carriers, were diverted due to bad weather between 12 am on December 25 to 6 am on December 28.