The DGCA brushed aside allegations by private airlines like Kingfisher, that though they have CAT 3B trained pilots, they are being sidelined.
NEW DELHI: Though the Delhi airport seems to be on everybody’s hate list at the moment, the DGCA on Wednesday brushed aside allegations by private airlines like Kingfisher, that though they have CAT 3B trained pilots, they are being sidelined.
“Even if you have pilots who are CAT 3B trained, you need to get proper authorisations, which has not been done,” said Kanu Gohain, director general, DGCA.
The DGCA is also toying with the idea that when pilots come in for their licence renewals, the course be altered to an extent that they all become CAT3 trained. CAT 3B trained pilots can take off if the visibility is between 50-200 metres.
Though the fog is playing havoc causing massive delays and cancellations of flights almost on a daily basis, the DGCA is finally ready with a plan of action. They are ready with a plan to lower the take-off norms by reducing the Low Take Off Minima (LTOM). At present, flights can only operate if the LTOM is about 550 metres.
Internationally, the LTOM is in the range of 150 to175 metres. What airlines now want is that the LTOM should be reduced to international standards.
The DGCA was reluctant to take the step because though flights can take off in lower visibility, they will face problems if they are not CAT 3B enabled in case of emergency landings.
“The problem with lowering the minimum visibility is that even aircraft, that are equipped to operate in CAT I and II Instrument Landing System (ILS) conditions, can take off in low visibility. But in case, the aircraft develops a snag and has to come back, it cannot land in such low visibility,” said a senior official.
The DGCA are now on the verge of finalizing four airports that are an hour away from Delhi. A twin-engine plane can land on a single engine, thereby eradicating the risk there.
This could result in reducing the effect of fog on flights by almost half, said sources. A new link way called the Bravo 3, which is CAT 3 enabled has also become operational at the Delhi airport.
Besides this, other measures are also being taken at the Delhi airport for passenger comfort.
This includes having students from airline institutes at the airport to help passengers. Call center executives are functioning out of the airport to send sms’s and provide flight schedules to passengers.
However, the DGCA said more than 30 per cent passengers do not leave their contact details.
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