(HT)
The nearly month-long shutdown of runway 28/10 at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) was marked by negligible progress on the technical upgrade that the closure was meant for, officials aware of the matter said, adding that the runway is now expected to be available for operations by May 8.
While the Airports Authority of India (AAI), responsible for installing the instrument landing system (ILS), continued its work, officials said the airport operator in charge of the runway lighting system “could barely begin the work” and will resume it during the next shutdown in mid-June.
The runway was closed on April 8 to upgrade its ILS to CAT III B standards, enabling aircraft operations during low visibility—a frequent issue during Delhi’s winter fog. However, by April 11, the airport began experiencing major flight delays, which officials attributed to poor planning among stakeholders and unfavourable easterly winds. This prompted civil aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu to call an urgent meeting and pause the upgrade.
“The AAI began work towards installing ILS on the runway and will continue to do so,” said an AAI official, requesting anonymity. “The ILS consists of two parts: a localiser and a glideslope or glide path. Work for the localiser is underway in the localiser hut, which houses the transmitter and is placed outside the runway safety area. The glideslope is an antenna transmitting ultra-high frequency radio signals to aircraft, located about 1,000 feet from the touchdown zone. Both pieces of equipment are positioned in a way that does not interfere with flight movements.”
Meanwhile, an official familiar with the matter said lighting system work had just begun when the suspension was announced. “Pipes and channels for the lighting system were being laid when the decision to halt the work was taken. Since then, efforts have focused on restoring operations from the runway,” he said.
A second official said the airport operator is expected to complete restoration work and apply for inspection by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) by Monday evening. “The DGCA must be notified about the completion of restoration work, which is expected on Monday,” he said. “The DGCA inspection may take a couple of days, after which the runway may be operational from May 8,” added a ministry official.
The runway is scheduled to close again on June 15 for the remaining upgrade work and is expected to be fully operational by September 15.
IGIA has four runways, the newest operational since 2023. Terminal 2 was closed on April 15, with its traffic—about 46,000 passengers and 270,280 flights annually—shifted to the expanded Terminal 1.
On April 20, Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) posted, X: “Runway 10/28 will be brought back into operation in the first week of May, with the remaining upgrade activities deferred for a month or so.”
