After IndiGo, Air India's travel advisory at Delhi airport: 'Reach at least...'

Delhi airport congestion: Air India has advised all passengers to carry only one piece of cabin baggage for a seamless security check and reach at least 3.5 hours early.

Amid a mad rush and chaos at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International airport, Air India on Tuesday released an advisory asking domestic passengers to reach the airport at least 3.5 hours before departure, as opposed to the 60-minute rule for domestic flights. Meanwhile, international passengers have been asked to reach four hours prior to their flight.

Passengers queue up to enter the Delhi airport (Vipin Kumar/HT Photo)

The airline has also advised all passengers to carry only one piece of cabin baggage for a seamless security check and complete web check-in for faster boarding.

“Passengers are advised to reach at least 3.5 hours for domestic and 4 hours for international before their flight departure times for faster movement at the Airport,” Air India tweeted.

Delhi airport has been witnessing massive congestion for the past week with heavier than usual footfall. The government swung into action and summoned the chief executive officer of Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) over the issue.

The civil aviation ministry has also ordered decongestion measures and asked airlines to deploy adequate manpower at all check-in and baggage drop counters to ensure the smooth flow of passengers.

Earlier today, budget carrier IndiGo had advised passengers to reach the airport at least 3.5 hours prior to domestic departures and carry a single piece of hand baggage, weighing up to 7kg.

IndiGo also advised its passengers to use gate numbers 5 and 6 for entry to Terminal 3 of the airport, as they were the nearest to the airline's check-in counters.

On Monday, Union civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia made a surprise visit to the Delhi Airport after a flurry of complaints on social media platforms and otherwise of delays because of the congestion.