Soon, the Mumbai airport may be able to work to its maximum capacity of 1,040 flights a day or even more.
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has floated an expression of interest to buy a new air traffic management (ATM) system, which will help accommodate maximum flights in a given period of time, along with taking care of contingencies such as closure of neighbouring airspaces or other emergency situations that pressurise Mumbai’s air traffic. Senior AAI officials said the aim is to get the new system working within 15 months.
The Mumbai Air Traffic Controller (ATC) currently uses a 15-year-old air system, which is unable to bear the load of growing air traffic. The maintenance contract for the system has expired, and its spare parts too are not available in the market.
