Airport services at Chennai Airport restored after Cyclone Varda, says AAI

Chennai [India], Dec.15 (ANI): Operations at Chennai Airport have resumed after a gap of nearly 22 hours, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) has said in a statement. On receipt of weather warning from Indian Meteorological Department at 7 a.m. on December 12 about a severe cyclonic storm "Vardah" progressing towards Chennai, the Airport director and senior officers of airport operation and air navigation services of the Airports Authority of India disseminated the warning to all airlines and other stakeholders at the airport for possible action as per standard operating procedures (SOPs)/ contingency plan. As a precautionary measure, 46 scheduled flights were despatched from the ground considering the past experience during the last flooding of Chennai in December 2015. All small aircrafts were also shifted inside the hanger for safety. All aircrafts, passenger boarding bridges, ground handling equipment and vehicles of operational area were securely moored and safely parked. All the essential facilities brought back to function in spite of totally disrupted power supply from the state electricity board. High speed winds and non-availability of power supply which had forced the stopping of radar antennae and switching off of navigational aids. The AAI successfully implemented the contingency plan by employing additional safety margins for separation standards during the entire period resulting in smooth operation of over flying aircraft. Before starting of operations from Chennai Airport, several rounds of inspections and meetings were held with stakeholders and after the improvement in weather; the total airport operations resumed and normalized, the AAI statement said. (ANI)