Bigger, Better Delhi Airport by 2022

Aug. 6, 2019

Aug. 6--Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport, the busiest in the country, is expected to complete its expansion work by June 2022, and take its overall capacity to 100 million per annum against 70 million currently. 

Under the plan, work on which has already started, the Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) would carry out integration of the departure and arrival terminals of T1, construction of new T1 apron, a fourth runway and dual elevated taxiway.

An additional runway and taxiway would help the airport reduce the runway occupancy time from 60 seconds to 45-50 seconds, and eventually take the per hour handling capacity to 128 aircraft movements against 75 currently.

"Keeping in view the unprecedented growth in the number of people travelling by air over the last few years, expansion of Delhi Airport has become the need of the hour to make it future-ready with enhanced passenger experience. The mega expansion of Delhi Airport would not only help the existing airlines to enhance their services but also create adequate room for new airlines to initiate their services. With this expansion, Delhi Airport will once again set a new standard for the airport experience," said I Prabhakara Rao, Deputy Managing Director, GMR Group.

As part of the expansion plan, more baggage belts, self baggage drop system, automated tray retrieval system and scanners will be added at T3, which will be able to handle 45 million passengers annually. The capacity of T1 will be doubled from 20 million passengers per annum to 40 million. A call on T2 will be taken depending on the traffic growth and it might make way for a new terminal.

The new air traffic control (ATC) tower, to open later this year, and the fourth runway, to be launched in 2021, would help it reduce air congestion and handle more flights, officials said.

"T1 of IGI airport handles the Low Cost Carrier (LCC) domestic traffic of the airport. These carriers have registered a phenomenal growth during the last few years, calling for an expansion of the terminal. Delhi Metro under its Phase 3 programme, is connecting this terminal to the catchment areas of central and south Delhi, making it quicker and easier for commuters from these localities to access terminal 1. Since T1 is operating beyond its capacity, the expansion will begin from there and cover the airside, terminal building and city side," said a DIAL official.

Departure Terminal 1D and Arrival Terminal 1C, will be merged and expanded to accommodate 40 million passengers per annum.

DIAL is focusing more on increasing the capacity of airside (area after the boarding gate, which includes runway, taxiways and parking), which it said, will be able to handle 140 million passengers per annum and cannot be expanded further.

T1, apart from having an increased number of parking stands for aircraft, would be equipped with latest technological upgrades including Visual Docking Guidance System, Fuel Hydrant System, Ground Power Units, Preconditioned Air, etc. The total area of Terminal 1 will increase from the present 64,140 sqm to 192,985 sqm and capacity would go up from 20 MPPA to 40 MPPA.

Besides, the integrated terminal would boast of several passenger-friendly facilities using advanced technologies such as Facial Recognition, Automated Tray Retrieval System (ATRS), Individual Carrier System (ICS), Common Usage Self Service (CUSS), and Self Baggage Drop (SBD) kiosks among others. These would help avoid long queues and ease the flow of passengers.

First Published:

Aug 05, 2019 20:51 IST

(c)2019 the Hindustan Times (New Delhi) 

Visit the Hindustan Times (New Delhi) at www.hindustantimes.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.