Delhi Airport; Fourth Runway to Become Operational in Sept
The fourth runway will be operational and a new terminal will be added to Delhi Airport in September 2023. The Indian aviation industry is expanding quickly, and we are gearing up for better connectivity and infrastructure with a renewed focus on innovation, according to Rajiv Bansal, the aviation secretary, who made the announcement on Thursday.
The fourth runway, which will be somewhat shorter than the third runway known as 29/11, is anticipated to be about 4,400 metres long and 75 metres wide. This upgrade is anticipated to significantly reduce flight wait times, facilitating quick aircraft handling at the airport.
The expansion proposal for the Delhi airport's Phase III-A includes the new runway. The current Terminal 1 will be degraded, a fourth runway will be built, and other development projects would boost the airport's capacity from 66 million to 100 million passengers annually for an investment of $98,000 million.
According to passengers handled, the IGI Airport was recently listed as one of the top 10 busiest airports in the world. Prior to Paris's Charles de Gaulle Airport, Delhi Airport was placed tenth for 2022 by the Airports Council International (ACI). The largest airport in India, Delhi, is the only one from South and Southeast Asia to make the list of the top 10 busiest airports compiled by ACI.
In 2022, the Delhi airport handled close to 59.5 million passengers, according to ACI figures. For 2021 and 2019, the airport was ranked as the 13th and 17th busiest, respectively.