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Mumbai: Despite flight cuts, airport struggles with congestion
Updated On: 26 February, 2024 06:58 AM IST | Mumbai | Prasun Choudhari
Experts warn of the extremely challenging impact of reduced flights at Mumbai airport
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Aviation experts question the efficacy of reduced flight operations. File pic
Despite a reduction in hourly flight operations, the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) continues to struggle with the issue of air traffic congestion. Currently, CSMIA maintains its status as the busiest airport, surpassing others with a single runway in terms of flight operations. According to officials, December 2023 marked a peak in its monthly traffic, reaching 4.88 million passengers. The Union Ministry of Civil Aviation had mandated a reduction in flights at the city airport. Aviation experts question the effectiveness of reduced flight operations. Captain Mohan Ranganathan, aviation expert, said, “The impact of reduced flight operations seems constrained, as congestion remains a significant challenge for both airlines and airport authorities.”
Talking about why Mumbai airport gets so crowded, another expert, who didn’t want to be named, said, “Even if one plane is delayed, it messes up the schedule for other flights. A plane usually flies to many cities in a day, and if it’s late, it affects all its flights. Mumbai has two terminals but only one runway is used at a time, unlike Delhi’s airport, which has four runways and three terminals. Even with fewer flights, planes are still late, causing a lot of trouble for passengers. For example, this morning (February 25), an IndiGo flight had to circle above the airport for almost half an hour because the runway wasn’t clear.”
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