In a preemptive move foreseeing the fog this winter, the Delhi airport, for the first time, has made elaborate arrangements for passengers, by making provisions for dedicated enclosures for their comfort in case the travellers’ flight is delayed.
Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL), which operates and manages the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport with three (T1, T2, T3) terminals has set up special enclosures to accommodate passengers who shall be disembarked from flights delayed for over three hours to allow their faster return to board their respective flights.
According to DIAL, these enclosures will be located at the Bus Boarding Gates and certain aerobridges in Terminal 3, the transfer area in Terminal 2, and the bus boarding gate in Terminal 1. The facilities will serve both domestic and international passengers. The new plan will allow passengers to remain in a separate enclosure, saving time and reducing hassles for both flyers and airline staff.
The government has relaxed the security protocols at airports to allow passengers of flights delayed by over three hours or canceled due to fog, weather or technical issues to disembark and return to the terminal.
“Ranging from 250 to 450 square meters, these enclosures will be able to hold between 55 and 120 passengers at a time. They are intended to facilitate security screening, allowing passengers to smoothly re-enter the terminal’s Security Hold Area (SHA). These enclosures will have essential amenities like toilets and vending machines wherever feasible. The enclosures would only be utilized as a security processing area after which the passengers would enter the SHA which would give the passengers access to all the facilities available there. Only airline staff escorting passengers from stranded flights would be permitted to enter the enclosures for security reasons”, DIAL said in a statement.
To maintain safety and security, CISF personnel will be stationed in the enclosures to screen passengers returning from delayed or stranded flights before they are allowed to join other screened passengers in the SHA.
Additionally, personnel from the Private Security Agency (PSA) will verify the documents of passengers affected by the fog/weather or technical issues.
“This arrangement would save passengers from having to undergo the security check through the normal process, wherein in such cases after disembarking, passengers are taken to arrivals and processed through Domestic or International transfer areas as the case may be before being brought back to the Security Hold Area. Bringing such passengers directly to the reverse entry point significantly reduces the time taken in the de-boarding and boarding - from approximately 2.30 hours to just a few minutes.The proposed changes to the security-checking rules aim to optimise flight slots and reduce passenger inconvenience”, it said.
The annual winter fog crisis in Delhi, particularly during December and January, causes significant inconvenience for passengers and wastes critical flight operation hours. In December last year, adverse weather in India led to flight cancellations impacting over 35,000 passengers, while 3.64 lakh people faced delays. These disruptions underscore the challenges airports face during this season. Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport ranks among the top 10 busiest airports in the world. In 2023, it hosted approximately 72.2 million passengers and had an annual passenger handling capacity of 100 million across its three terminals.
Commenting on the initiative, CEO-DIAL, Videh Kumar Jaipuriar, CEO-DIAL, said, “DIAL has been working to enhance passengers’ experience at Delhi Airport. By implementing this new initiative, DIAL aims to significantly reduce the time taken for the de-boarding and boarding process for passengers of flights affected by fog/weather or technical issues.”
