Scindia inaugurates fourth runway, eastern cross taxiway at Delhi airport

Scindia also inaugurated India’s first eastern cross taxiway (ECT) that will connect the northern part of the airfield to the southern side

Union minister for civil aviation Jyotiraditya Scindia on Friday inaugurated the fourth runway at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport. With this, the airport became the first in India to have four runways.

An aircraft takes off from the newly inaugurated fourth runway of the IGI airport, in New Delhi on Friday. (Vipin Kumar/HT)

Scindia also inaugurated India’s first eastern cross taxiway (ECT) that will connect the northern part of the airfield to the southern side.

Inaugurating the fourth runway, the Union minister said that the new runway is expected to boost the capacity at the airport.

“This fourth runway makes Delhi airport the only one in the country to have four runways. This runway increases the throughput capacity of the Delhi airport from roughly 1,400-1,500 air traffic movements (ATMs) per day to almost 2,000 ATMs per day,” Scindia said.

Scindia also said that he has asked the Delhi airport operator — the Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) — to launch the fourth terminal by October. “The next challenge which I have put before them is to ensure that the fourth terminal is also operational by October prior to the onset of the rush season,” the minister said.

Pointing that the new runway, along with the new terminal, will allow Delhi airport to cater to 109 million passengers yearly, Scindia said that the country’s civil aviation sector is witnessing the beginning of the growth phase and that the sector is contributing to the economic rise of India.

“This runway, along with the terminal expansion, will add to creating capacity to serve more than 109 million people throughput which would crest and beat even Atlanta in its capability,” he said.

“There will come a time in India... in the next three years or four years, where our fleet capacity will grow from the current 720 to almost 1,500 aircraft...,” he said.

Meanwhile, Scindia also inaugurated the eastern cross taxiway (ECT) which officials said will reduce taxi time for aircraft and help passengers deplane within 12 minutes of landing.

“With the ECT and the fourth runway you will see a reduction of almost 55,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) emission on an annual basis,” Scindia said.

He said that the civil aviation sector today is not only contributing to the transportation and the infrastructure sector in India but is also a key enabler in the rise of India’s economic power.