MUMBAI: As winter approaches, all aircraft overflying the mid-latitudes encounter strong Westerlies or high-speed winds that blow from the west. Flying against these winds consumes more fuel as it increases travel time, say pilots. IndiGo appears to have learnt about this meteorological phenomenon recently, as over the past few days the airline has been leaving behind check-in bags of passengers booked on its Delhi-Istanbul flight so that its A320Neo aircraft can carry more fuel to fly against strong headwinds.
Westerlies or jet streams, as pilots call them, get stronger as winter sets in. Unless IndiGo makes certain operational changes, problems with check-in bags on the Delhi-Istanbul flight are likely to stay all through winter. In the next five to six months, IndiGo passengers may find on landing in Istanbul that their bags haven’t arrived, say pilots.
There are a number of solutions to the problem, say air safety experts. The airline can reduce the seats or reduce cargo and carry more fuel, or plan a fuel halt en route.
