IGIA runway to shut again mid-June

The government has begun preparations for one of Delhi airport's four runways to be shut again in mid-June and has instructed airlines to plan flight cancellations, officials said quoting civil aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu's discussion with airlines on Tuesday.

- Neha LM Tripathi

NEW DELHI:

Runway 28/10 of the Capital's IGI Airport needs to be shut for its landing instruments to be upgraded. The first attempt to do this in April had to be aborted within four weeks after flight schedules descended into chaos, with the airport unable to handle its typical load of roughly 1,400 flights a day on three of its runways.

A second attempt will be made beginning June 15, which will last 90 days. The period identified by officials as relatively leaner than at present when many are expected to fly in and out of the city for vacations. "Civil aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu called a meeting with airlines on Tuesday morning and instructed them to start preparing for the runway closure, which is expected to last for around three months," said an official aware of the matter.