Fog to spare IGI till New Year, but Met predicts 3-4 dense spells in January

NEW DELHI: With dense fog giving IGI Airport a miss till now, Delhi is unlikely to see flight diversions till the New Year. But the Met department at IGIA has forecast three to four spells of dense fog in January. At least two spells were recorded at the airport this January when visibility stayed below 200 metres for over 10 hours.

“If you see the pattern, this is the best November since 2006 in terms of dense fog. Moderate fog was not there in November. In 2016 and 2017, the first few days of the month recorded the worst fog conditions, and then in the other half of the month, the second worst fog condition was witnessed,” said R K Jenamani, head of the Met department at IGIA.

“This November has been very good and there were spells of rain as well. The added effect of a western disturbance has pushed dense fog spells and the situation is likely to be relatively cleartill December 29,” he added. “Majority of the dense fog occurrences will take place in January.”

A Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) official said IGIA was well equipped to handle fog delays this year. It will get additional seats for passengers and has asked F&B outlets to keep more food and ensure faster clearance to avoid overcrowding. The steps have also been taken to ensure continuity of flight operations during low-visibility periods.

DIAL CEO Videh Kumar Jaipuriar said air traffic controllers, airlines, ground handlers, meteorological department and airport staff work in close coordination to combat extreme fog situations. “Handling operations smoothly during fog is a true reflection of our capabilities, operational readiness, emergency preparedness and crisis response.”

The DIAL staff provide ‘Follow-Me’ services to ensure seamless air traffic movement in dense fog and maintain vigil to avoid any untoward incident. “Our teams also work with equal rigour to ensure that the vehicular movement on the roads and parking areas is orderly and safe,” he added.

S B Sharma, general manager of Air Traffic Management (ATM)-Air Traffic Control (ATC), said the airport was already ready to handle any extreme fog situation. All air traffic controllers have been told to utilise low-visibility procedures (LVP) if the visibility drops due to dense fog, he added.

Additionally, a collaborative decision making cell is established at IGIA for better coordination among all stakeholders. “With these, predictability of flight operations would improve and commuting of passengers would be facilitated,” he added.