New technology to help address flight woes due to fog at Delhi airport

New Delhi, Dec 24 (ANI) Passengers flying into Delhi from various parts of the country this winter will no longer have to worry about diversion of their flights due to fog, thanks to a new technology being introduced by the Airports Authority of India (AAI).
The Air Traffic Flow Management (ATFM) system, in use in nine countries and being introduced in India for the first time, will provide information to airlines at the place of origin of a flight about the status of fog and congestion in Delhi so that they can plan their flights to the national capital accordingly, a top Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) official told ANI here on Monday.
As of now, in case of fog at Delhi airport, incoming flights are diverted to nearby airports, which causes a lot of inconvenience to the passengers.
Explaining the operation of the ATFM, DIAL CEO Videh Kumar Jaipuriar said that in case of fog at Delhi airport, the status would be conveyed well in advance to the aircraft at the place of their origin itself, asking them to delay departure.
Talking about other measures taken for passenger convenience, he said the DIAL has set up 24/7 helpline desk and call centres besides increasing the number of inquiry counters at the airport to deal deal with situations created due to flight delays.
Passengers also won't be facing any problems related to food and beverages in case of flight delays due to fog, Jaipuriar said.
"From the passengers' point of view, there are 3-4 things causing problems. One is how the passengers get the right information about flight timings. For that, we have a system which can give you the right information about flight operations," he said.
When referred to the sky rocketing of prices of food and beverages at the airport, the DIAL CEO said, "I can assure one thing to the passengers that airport food and beverages are not costly than what you pay in typical city malls." (ANI)