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Delhi’s IGI Airport restored normal operations after a technical glitch in the Air Traffic Control’s flight planning system disrupted over 800 flights. The AMSS failure forced manual handling, causing delays, but authorities have now stabilized the system.
Delhi Airport Back to Normal After ATC Glitch
New Delhi: Hundreds of flights were affected at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGI Airport) on Friday due to a technical malfunction in the Air Traffic Control (ATC) flight planning system.
The malfunction occurred in the Automatic Message Switching System (AMSS), causing significant delays in flight operations and leading to the cancellation of several flights. On Saturday morning, the airport authorities announced that airport operations had returned to normal.
Delhi Airport System Crash: What happened and what is ATC?
Delhi Airport issued an advisory at 11:55 AM on Saturday stating: “Airline operations at Delhi Airport are normalizing, and all concerned authorities are continuously working to minimize inconvenience to passengers. Passengers are requested to stay in touch with their respective airlines for the latest flight information.”
The AMSS (Automatic Message Switching System) is a system that transmits flight information and flight plan data to the air traffic controllers' screens. When this system failed, the ATC had to perform the entire process manually.
This meant that information for each flight had to be entered individually, causing delays in all incoming and outgoing flights. This affected not only Delhi Airport but also the entire country's air network, as many flights connect Delhi to other cities.
Over 100 flights delayed at Delhi Airport due to technical glitch
It has also come to light that the Air Traffic Controllers' Guild of India had warned the government and the DGCA in July that the systems being used at major airports like Delhi and Mumbai were experiencing increasing problems of "slowness and lagging," which could affect both operational efficiency and safety. Despite this, the system was not updated or replaced.
Indira Gandhi International Airport is the busiest airport in the country, handling approximately 1,500 flights daily. During peak hours, 60 to 70 flights operate every hour. In such a situation, if the automation system fails, delays and disruptions due to manual operation are inevitable.
The airport authority stated that all systems are now functioning smoothly again and flight operations have returned to normal. Passengers are advised to stay in touch with their airlines for information regarding their flights.
Delhi Airport System Crash: What happened and what is ATC?
This incident serves as a reminder of the importance of maintaining backups and updates in systems that rely on cutting-edge technology, to prevent such situations from recurring at the country's busiest airports.
