Some headway in airport shifting issue: IndiGo tells HC

Indigo Airlines today told the Delhi High Court that some headway has been made in its meeting with IGI airport operator DIAL to resolve the issues related to partial shifting of its flights as well as those of GoAir and Spicejet from Terminal-1 (T-1) to T-2 of Delhi's aviation hub.
IndiGo counsel told a bench of Justices Hima Kohli and Rekha Palli that more time should be given as there was a likelihood of an amicable resolution of the issue.
Pursuant to this submission by senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for IndiGo, the court listed the matter for further hearing on January 24.

The bench, however, made it clear that if there was no resolution of the issues, no further accommodation would be given to either side.
It also told both the sides, the airline and Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL), to be ready with sector wise break up of their flights and passengers, if there was no resolution of the issue by the next date.
The court on January 18 had given a "last opportunity" to DIAL and all the three airlines to sit and resolve the issues relating to partial shifting of their flights T-1 to T-2 of IGI airport.

Aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), on the last date had told the court that while IndiGo flew 12.7 million passengers per annum (mppa) between April 1 to December 31, 2017, Spicejet and GoAir's traffic load was 3.7 and over 2 mppa.

DGCA had given the information in pursuance to the court's earlier direction to provide details of the number of passengers who flew on these airlines to and from Delhi in this period.
The direction came during the hearing of an appeal by IndiGo against a single judge's December 20 last year order upholding the decision of the DIAL to partially shift its operations from T-1 to T-2.
IndiGo had contended that the decision would cause "complete confusion and inconvenience" to passengers and virtually have the effect of destroying its business.
It had said in view of T-2's operational capacity, both GoAir and Spicejet, keeping in view their traffic load and operations as per data provided by DIAL, could be accommodated there and Indigo could continue operating from T-1.

DIAL had rubbished IndiGo's claims and said there was no error in the single judge's order.
On October 21 last year, DIAL had asked the three airlines to shift their flights to and from Delhi to Mumbai, Kolkata and Bengaluru, to T-2 from January 4. All other flights of the airlines shall continue to operate from T-1, the airport operator had said.
While upholding DIAL's decision, the single judge had given the airlines time till February 15 to partially shift their operations.