Amid fog-related aircraft delays and cancellations, the DGCA issues SOPs for airlines: Exchange up-to-date information

The DGCA stressed that passengers should be informed about the flights and that information about them must be posted on the airline's website.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) released standard operating procedures for airlines on Monday in response to concerns regarding flight delays and cancellations at the Delhi airport caused by the current fog conditions.

Among the planes parked on the runway at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport's Terminal 3 is an Air India aircraft.(HTML File)

Airlines are required by the regulation to give accurate, real-time updates on flight delays brought on by fog. The aviation watchdog stressed that customers must be able to access this information via email, WhatsApp, and SMS in addition to the airline's website.

providing efficient training to airline employees working in airports, so they can communicate effectively and notify travellers of any flight delays.

"In view of the prevalent fog season and adverse weather conditions, airlines may cancel, sufficiently in advance, such flights that are anticipated to be delayed or consequentially delayed on account of such conditions beyond a period of 3 hours with a view to obviate congestion at the airport and mitigate passenger inconvenience," the DGCA stated in its statement.

The Civil Aviation Regulation (CAR) was put into effect, according to the DGCA, to ensure that passengers have sufficient protections in the event that a flight is disrupted. This covers situations like refused boardings, cancelled flights, and delays that happen without giving passengers enough notice. "The airlines are also required to publish the reference of the CAR on the flight tickets," the agency stated.

The issue of the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) comes at a time when numerous passengers went to social media to highlight substantial flight delays.

Minister for civil aviation Jyotiraditya Scindia gave the assurance that action is being done to "mitigate" the situation "in the near future," noting that all parties involved are putting in nonstop effort to reduce the impact of fog.

"Unprecedented fog struck Delhi yesterday morning, causing visibility to fluctuate for several hours and occasionally to zero between five and nine in the morning. Because CAT III runways are unable to support Zero-Visibility operations, the authorities were forced to impose a temporary shutdown of operations even on these runways," the minister stated in an X post.

"The decision was taken keeping passenger safety in mind, which remains the top priority for all in the aviation ecosystem,” Scindia remarked.