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Air traffic congestion over the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) here is expected to be reduced significantly from early next financial year as the AAI is set to put in place a new mechanism for regulating the traffic.
Airports Authority of India (AAI) is working towards the implementation of a Centrally-controlled Air Traffic Flow Management (C-AFTM) system across country's airspace and major airports, particularly those with high traffic density, in its bid to cut travel time for fliers.
The C-AFTM system, coming up at an estimated cost of Rs 107 crore, is to be initially implemented at the Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru and Kolkata airports. Once in place, it would reduce the holding time of planes over airports, an AAI spokesperson said.
The trials for C-AFTM system implementation at Delhi airports have already began and in all likelihood, it would be functional from April this year, he said.
Earlier in the day, AAI announced dedicating the C-ATFM system to the nation on the occasion of the country's 68th Republic Day at a function presided over by its chief, Guruprasad Mohapatra, in the presence of several senior officials.
Unable to land due to congestion, flights are often forced to hover above airports, particularly at Delhi and Mumbai, resulting in delays.
The new system would integrate data from airlines, airports and air-traffic agencies and inform airlines about the time planes will be parked at the destination airport well before departure.
India is on the threshold of becoming the seventh country in the world to implement the Air Traffic Flow Control Measures across its airports, Mohapatra said in a statement adding, "Once the system is in place, it would help in reducing carbon foot print, fuel savings and economic benefits to the air travellers."
With the introduction of C-ATFM, airiness are expected to save as much as Rs 1,680 crore per annum on account of less fuel burn besides providing enhanced safety to the air passengers, the AAI said.
The system is primarily meant to address the balancing of capacity against the demand to achieve optimum utilisation of the major resources such as airport, airspace and aircraft at every Indian airport where there is a capacity constraint.
The mechanism relies on a number of supporting systems, processes and operational data which are already in place, for efficient management of air traffic flow across the country, the AAI said adding it displays weather information along with static information about airports, air spaces and air routes.
C-AFTM processes the demand/capacity information, provides decision-making tools to the ATFM flow managers for collaborative decision making, in consultation with airlines, military and airports operators to facilitate the regulated flow of traffic in each airport in the country.
