Aircraft are prepared to begin landing on its newest runway, 29R/11L, at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA), beginning on September 7. This time fits with the beginning of the next G20 Leaders’ Summit on September 8.
The runway was opened on July 14, 2023, making it the fourth runway in use at IGIA. Due to the instrument landing system’s (ILS) delayed activation, the new runway has only been utilized for takeoffs since it was commissioned.
The ILS technology was purchased from Russia in May of this year, according to a TOI article citing sources, but its calibration has run into some difficulties.
A group of Russian engineers is now on-site addressing these problems by making the required corrections. The ambitious timetable for their work anticipates the 29R runway to be fully operational for landings starting on September 7 when the calibration procedure is finished and satisfactory testing has been carried out.
The two runways located on the Gurgaon side of the Northern Access Road would be able to accommodate both landings and takeoffs if the ILS calibration was successful.
When both runways are operational, this route can help the flow of air traffic between Mahipalpur and Terminal 3 (T3). The 28/10 runway, which has a jumbo jet point and is historically known for it, and the smaller 27/09 runway are the two ones on the Dwarka side of this route.
This operational improvement has relevance in light of the upcoming G20 Leaders’ Summit. Starting on September 8, prominent world leaders like US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping are expected to come.
Because of its closeness to the Palam Technical Area, which is visited by high-profile guests including the President, Vice President, and Prime Minister, runways 27 or 28 will be favored for planes bringing major global leaders to land.
Despite the fact that the Palam Technical Area is located off runway 27, both runways—27 and 28—will continue to be in operation, providing pilots the freedom to select the best airstrip. For their arrivals and departures, other VVIPs will use Terminal 3, which is equidistant from runways 29L & 29R and 28 & 27.
Although they can accommodate almost simultaneous aircraft movements, runways 29R and 29L call for extreme accuracy. While on route to or from Terminal 3, aircraft taxiing to or from 29L/11R will need to cross the active runway 29R/11L.
A Wednesday morning event highlighted how crucial this collaboration is. Momentarily, an air traffic controller failed to provide permission for an aircraft that had landed on 29L to cross 29R on its way to Terminal 3. Additionally, permission was given for another aircraft to take off from 29R. Fortunately, the attentive pilot of the approaching aircraft informed ATC, causing both aircraft to safely come to a stop and preventing any accident.
The Airports Authority of India was being questioned on how to take action to avoid such events in the future, but as of the time of publication, no official response had been received. Runway 28 will be closed for 75 days after the G20 Summit is over in order to do the required repairs; a December reopening is anticipated.
