After coming under heavy social media flak for only one operational CAT III equipped runway to handle flight operations during dense fog, Delhi Airport wrote to the Ministry of Civil Aviation, citing G20 and GRAP IV (Graded Response Action Plan) among reasons for the delay.
Runway 28/10 has been closed since September 2023 for necessary recarpeting and maintenance work.
In its letter to the Ministry, Delhi Airport said, "DIAL took up the project of runway rehabilitation between 13 September 2023 to 15 December 2023. It may be noted DIAL could take up the rehabilitation project after G-20 Summit and after the operationalisation of 4th runway for arrivals. Accordingly, duration available for the project was compressed from 12 September 2023 till 15 December 2023 (commencement of LVP/low visibility protocols)
India hosted the G20 Summit, a key international event with the world's top leaders in New Delhi from September 9-10, 2023. The airport had to put operations on hold till the conclusion of the event. Earlier, flights had finally started landing on 29R/11L, the airport's newest fourth runway from 9 September. With an estimated 75 days of work at least, it was expected that the shut runway 28/10 wouldn't be operational as the fog season set in.
In its letter, the airport has said the enforcement of GRAP IV in Delhi, a measure to combat air pollution, had a disruptive impact on the execution of work after it commenced. Other challenges which struck the project included technical issues in the originally supplied signage, delayed supply of imported lights, and duct blockages encountered during cable laying leading to re-work at multiple locations.
Despite these unforeseen obstacles and the compressed project timeline, Delhi airport authorities highlighted their efforts to keep up with the schedules, in their communication with the authorities.
They've now committed to completing all project activities by January 19, 2024, hoping to make Delhi's warhorse airstrip operational again. As per sources, after the recent furore, an inspection of runway 28/10 was conducted by DGCA yesterday and another is expected on Friday.
On Tuesday, Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia posted on social media, "Operationalisation of RWY 10/28 as CAT III at Delhi Airport after recarpeting will also be undertaken", as part of SOPs being adopted to mitigate passenger inconvenience that are fog-induced.
He also confirmed that RWY 29L has been made operational today. This was in response to an India Today Television exclusive report on Monday that highlighted how cranes from the Dwarka Expressway work on the Gurugram end of runway 29L/11R were obstructing localiser signals of ILS (instrument landing system) essential for low visbility landings. This was forcing downgrading of the 29L end to CAT I from CAT IIIB.