Delhi airport to resume flights from Terminal 3 post lockdown

The plan said the passengers of Vistara and IndiGo would enter the airport through gates 1 and 2 only. These two airlines will have check-in rows A, B and C among them, it said.

Commercial passenger flights at Delhi airport will initially operate from Terminal 3 after the lockdown ends, said a senior official of its operator DIAL on Sunday, adding that entry gates, self check-in machines and check-in bays will be allocated to airlines to avoid overcrowding by air travellers.

Grounded aircraft stand at Terminal 3 at the Indira Gandhi International Airport during a lockdown implemented due to the coronavirus in New Delhi. (Bloomberg)

The airport will keep all food, beverage and retail shops open to avoid overcrowding at one place and use “ultraviolet disinfection tunnels” for all incoming baggage, according to a plan prepared by the GMR group-led Delhi International Airport Ltd.

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The plan said the passengers of Vistara and IndiGo would enter the airport through gates 1 and 2 only. These two airlines will have check-in rows A, B and C among them, it said.

AirAsia India and Air India passengers will use entry gates 3 and 4. These passengers will then go to rows D, E and F where the staff of these two airlines would assist them check-in, according to the plan.

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Passengers of all other domestic airlines will enter through gate 5 and will head to row H, the plan said.

All international airlines’ passengers would be entering the airport using gates 6, 7 and 8. The staff of these airlines would be sitting at rows J, K, L and M for check-in at Terminal 3.

The DIAL’s exit plan stated that entry gates, self check-in machines and check-in bays would be allocated to airlines to ensure smooth flow of passengers from forecourt into check-in hall and security thereafter.

India has been under a lockdown since March 25 to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus, which has infected around 40,000 people and killed more than 1,300 people in the country till now.

All commercial passenger flights have been suspended for the lockdown period. However, cargo flights, medical evacuation flights and special flights permitted by the aviation regulator DGCA are allowed to operate.

“Initially, once the lockdown is over, the commercial passenger fights will be operating from Terminal 3 only. Later, once the number of flights increase, other terminals will be used,” the DIAL official said.

The DIAL would be preparing stringent standard operating procedures (SOPs) for food, beverage and retail shops in order to ensure social distancing, the exit plan noted.

The operator will promote digital payments and digital menus at various outlets to minimise human contact. Moreover, DIAL would encourage usage of self-ordering kiosks at the food court to reduce queues.