7 flights diverted, several delayed as IGI shuts down for PM's plane

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NEW DELHI: Last month, 11 Delhi-bound flights had to be diverted due to a double VIP movement at IGI Airport. On Monday, seven flights were stopped from landing at Delhi and sent off to Jaipur and Amritsar due to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Srinagar.

No operations took place at IGI for over 45 minutes as the PM's chopper landed at the airport from Safdarjung and he then switched aircraft to fly on to Srinagar.

Morning hours are extremely heavy in terms of arriving flights. There were 27 arrivals scheduled between 10am and 10.30am on Monday. While seven were diverted, several others were delayed by 1-2 hours, the impact of which lasted well into the evening. The diverted flights also landed in Delhi only a couple of hours after their scheduled arrival time.

As per safety requirements, no operations are permitted at an airport for three minutes each before and after a VIP movement. On Monday, the PM was scheduled to fly in VIP-3 to Srinagar at 10.10am but eventually took off only around 10.39am. Sources said all operations at IGI airport were stopped by air traffic control shortly before the three choppers in the PM's entourage took off from Safdarjung airport.

"The flying time from Safdarjung to IGI is barely 2-3 minutes. Because of that, no departures and arrivals could be permitted once start-up clearance had been asked for from Safdarjung. The choppers took off from Safdarjung at 9.57am and landed at IGI at 10.06am. Again, the switch-over time from the chopper to the aircraft at the Air Force technical area takes barely any time but on Monday, there was a 15-18 minute delay," said sources.

After that, it took another 10 minutes or so before the PM's aircraft was airborne. Normal operations resumed three minutes later.

In the past, security measures surrounding VIP movements have not only caused flight delays but in an incident last year, led to a person's death. In both cases, civilians had to pay the price for a smooth passage for VIPs.

In November 2009, a 32-year-old man had lost his life after he reportedly did not get entry to the Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) in Chandigarh due to high security over Singh's visit to the institute. His relatives had alleged that the vehicle that had been carrying the patient, in a critical condition, from Ambala was stopped at various points for checking and was finally not permitted inside.

Reacting to the incident then, the PM had said: "This is something I deeply regret. I have issued instructions so that in future the authorities are more sensitive to the concerns of the common man while imposing such restrictions for reasons of security."