IndiGo reported only 22% flights on-time at six metro airports. Air India’s OTP stood at 18.6% on Monday.
Within hours of an IndiGo passenger hitting the pilot of the aircraft, came the videos of IndiGo passengers of a diverted flight sitting on tarmac and having dinner. This prompted the next set of meme fest on the Internet. The incident also raised questions on the safety and security protocols at the airport amid fog. When the security forces do not allow a ramp-to-ramp transfer and mandate passengers who have deplaned to go through security checks again, passengers sitting on the tarmac was unthinkable.
A routine maintenance-linked closure of the runway got extended beyond the planned period and a higher-than-ever blanket of fog rendered both take-offs and landings impossible for some hours. Coupled with airlines not updating passengers adequately, long hours inside the plane became a perfect recipe for irritation, if not disaster. From a first-time flyer to crew and commoner to stars, everyone who tried taking a flight over the last two days has a story to share.
The On Time Performance dropped drastically, with IndiGo reporting only 22% flights on-time at six metro airports, AIX Connect (erstwhile AirAsia India) reporting just over 30% flights on-time. Air India’s OTP stood at 18.6% on Monday. While the figures are for the top six airports in the country, the top six cover over 70% of all departures either at arrivals or departures. IndiGo has been operating an average of 1760 domestic departures daily; at 22% only about 387 flights would have been on time, provided the airline did operate as many. Indications are that the airline did not — nor did any other airline.
Sample this — from the first until the thirteenth of January, India saw an average of 2883 domestic departures and carried 428370 domestic passengers on those. On January 14th, the departures dropped to 2552 with passenger numbers down to 381259. The average load factors remained the same. The next day, i.e. January 15th, the departures were low again at 2598 with 390216 domestic passengers.
The two days have seen a reduction in flight by about 330 flights and an average of 40,000 fewer domestic passengers flying out. These passengers were probably blessed if they were informed about the cancellations while benign away from the airport, unlike multiple cases where flights were cancelled after being inside the aircraft for long hours.
