Sunday, August 07, 2011

Delayed flights end in 'criminal' fuel wastage. (India)

MUMBAI: Delays during peak traffic hours at Mumbai airport do not just inconvenience passengers. They also cost airlines a bomb. A rough estimate by aviation engineers and pilots shows that at least 105 tonnes of fuel is burnt every day by almost 70 flights while hovering over the airport during two hours of air traffic congestion.

This means that fuel worth approximately Rs 76.78 lakh is wasted daily in between 9.30pm and 11.30pm before these flights get landing clearance. The figure, said airport and airline officials, is of minimum fuel burnt by an Airbus-A320 or a Boeing 777. Bigger aircraft lose almost double the fuel.

TOI spoke to senior commanders and engineers who said that one flight on an average burns 1.5 tonne of fuel to hold over for 30 minutes. At Mumbai airport, almost 70 flights land between 9.30pm and 11.30 pm. In the first 15-20 minutes, the delay is around 20 minutes. By 10pm, it goes up to 30 minutes. At 10.30pm, as more flights come in, the holding time escalates to over 40-50 minutes.

"Going by the figures, we can safely assume that the average delay is at least 30 minutes, if not more. In such a situation, a regular aircraft like A-319, 320 or a Boeing 777, will burn 1.5 tonne of fuel. Hence, 70 flights will consume 105 tonnes or 131.25 kilolitre. This is only when we assume that all aircraft are of the aforesaid type," said a senior aviation engineer from Air India (AI). "However, the quantity of fuel wasted will be more as bigger aircraft, too, land in Mumbai during that time. A Boeing 747-400 is a four-engine aircraft; it will consume around 3 tonnes in 30 minutes. The total worth of fuel wasted can be Rs 1 crore daily," he added.

A senior commander said that with 105 tonnes of fuel, one can operate around 12 flights on an A-320 and six flights on a Jumbo between Mumbai and Delhi. "This is a time when the price of ATF has increased air travel cost. This criminal wastage is also incurring losses for airlines. Hence, such a huge wastage of fuel is criminal.

At present, the cost of ATF in Mumbai is Rs 58,620 per kilolitre. Any wastage adds to the cost of operations," the senior commander from a private airline said.

Is there a solution to the problem? Mumbai airport officials said the delays are due to airlines not maintaining schedules. "Fifty flights are supposed to arrive at the airport between the two hours of peak time. Almost 30 flights, some of which are included in the 50 and some over and above them, arrive 20-30 minutes before time. The air traffic control (ATC) ends up handling 70 flights in these two hours, many of which are before schedule

This clogs up the skies and also delays flights which have arrived on time," said an airport official. "The number of flights handled by ATC officials in these two hours is way more than the sanctioned limit by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA)," he added.

Kapil Kaul, CEO, south Asia, Centre Asia Pacific Aviation (CAPA) feels that there is no solution to the problem at Mumbai. "Mumbai airport has a structural problem. There is sub-optimal utilization of the ATC, which is under-staffed and ill-equipped. Also, wastage of fuel is not only a matter of money, but also of environment. The carbon emissions go up with more fuel burn.

This is an aspect currently ignored. These delays also affect the service ratings of the airport. The standards may be improved but the issue would still remain unless the ATC utilization is better," Kaul said.

Source:  http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com

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