“Our current capacity (T1 + T2 + T3) is around 104-109 million passengers per annum (CPA), of which international passengers are 22 million (only T3 handles overseas flights). Last year we handled around 20 million international passengers and we are running out of capacity on this front. With international traffic growing at 8-10% per annum and domestic-international transfers on the rise, we need more capacity for overseas traffic,” Jaipuriar said at a CAPA event on Friday.
Two short-term options that could be implemented in 6-12 months are to make T2 fully international or convert a domestic pier at T3 into an international one. No firm decision has been taken yet on which option will be adopted, he said.
“The shift from T2 to the extended T1 (when it opens later this month after getting security clearance) will happen in a phased manner. We will carry out the shift in a span of about 15 days and complete the process within two months,” the CEO said.
India's largest airline – IndiGo – has objected to this as all its international flights will be from T3 and all domestic flights from T1 (once it shifts from T2). On the other hand, AI Group has said that IndiGo has told DIAL that all international and most domestic flights will be from the same terminal T3. “When T2 closes, IndiGo will have to bear the entire hassle of transferring passengers between the distant T1 and T3. Either make us shift 100% to T1 by building an international wing there, or let us also do some domestic flights from T3, IndiGo has told DIAL and is awaiting a response from them,” say people in the know. Jaipuriar did not comment on the issue.
Meanwhile, DIAL is preparing for transfer of passengers between T1 and T3 – something that happens on city-bound buses in the absence of air trains or automated people movers (APMs). “We are working on transfer of luggage by air for passengers taking connecting flights on the same airline group. For instance, passengers travelling Patna-Istanbul (on both IndiGo flights) via Delhi will not need to carry their bags on arrival at T1 from the domestic to international leg of the journey. For the return (when customs needs to be cleared), we are working with government agencies to see how this can work,” Jaipuriar said.
To handle transfer traffic, DIAL is building a hotel outside T3. It is looking at whether the same can be done in the car park outside T1.
air train
: DIAL to soon float international bids for proposed Air Train at IGIA — a long-term solution for seamless inter-terminal connectivity. “The APM transfer will be free for passengers. We are looking at allowing paying passengers to go for it who wish to travel towards the city within the airport ecosystem. There may still be some viability gap and to fill it we may approach the government for one-time tariff support in the form of airport development fee (ADF). We have made that representation,” the CEO said.
It will take around 3-4 years from start of work on the air train to completion – the same time as the brand new and larger T4 will replace the T2.
Future Developments:
With four runways, IGIA currently has 1,500 daily slots. “We are working with international consultants to optimise our runway utilisation. In the next 2-3 years, first with dependent parallel use of the runways and then independent use, we can add 500-700 slots per day. From the current peak of 84 aircraft movements per hour, it can go up to 110 aircraft movements,” Jaipuriar said.
Delhi Airport Technology is being used extensively. Along with immigration, it has arranged for biometric machines for international passengers at their arrivals. “People coming on e-visa give their biometrics (finger scan). Doing this at immigration meant long queues. So we have introduced this,” Jaipuriar said.
Trends, DIAL says it is working closely with the Delhi Metro to ensure that more and more people come to the airport by metro and also use baggage drop at stations where this facility is available. Baggage drop facility will be available for passengers at more and more stations. He said, “We are seeing that more and more people are using the metro.”
Jaipuriar said 25-30% of passengers travelling abroad are OCI (Overseas Citizenship of India) card holders. “They are looking for souvenirs and sweets to take back from India as the airport is the last place they can do so before flying out of here. They are also looking for food and beverage brands they are familiar with and also want to try new emerging Indian brands,” he said.
Aerocity: Delhi airport's Aerocity – which is being expanded on a large scale by Bharti Realty – is becoming a destination in itself. “We now see that people coming to Delhi stay at Aerocity hotels and have meetings during the day and then return home. Sometimes they complete their work here and return the same day. The hotels here are witnessing 90% occupancy. From 18 lakh sq ft retail, we are moving towards a 3 crore sq ft commercial hub,” Jaipuriar said.