Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport is inaugurating the new state-of-the-art air traffic control (ATC) tower on June 15. The transition from the two-decade-old ATC tower to this new 103-meter tall tower will start from the said date. The transition will occur in multiple phases. All flights will be handled from the new facility from September 15. Currently, the final site acceptance test is underway for the new tower.
The new ATC tower at IGI airport boasts of several new advanced facilities including the latest communication system. To make the communication clearer, internet protocol servers are set up at remote locations and voices can be heard clearer than before. The new systems installed in the tower will allow the officials to see if pilots are taking the steps as directed by the official at ATC.
Thanks to its height, the new ATC tower at Delhi IGI offers better visibility to the controllers and make the decision making faster. It has 72 meters tall Qutub Minar in its line of sight. The tower will provide a bird’s eye view of each corner of the operational area, enhancing the safety aspects of air traffic management.
The new ATC tower will have additional capacity, allowing the authorities to reduce the number of flights handled by one controller, improving their efficiency. The new facility will also enable the controllers to divide the air space into nine sectors, instead of the current five.
Further dividing the air space will reduce the number of flights handled by one controller per hour. This will increase our efficiency as the new tower can accommodate a larger number of controllers. This will also enable the existing air space to accommodate increased air traffic in future, said a senior officer from the air traffic control to the Hindustan Times.
Delhi’s IGI airport handles a peak of 1400 flights every day. After the grounding of Jet Airways, suspension of Boeing 737 Max and closure of Pakistan airspace, the number of flights has reduced to 1250 per day.
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