Srinagar, Dec 6: IndiGo’s grounding has jammed the tarmac, turning it into a bottleneck for all its rival airlines.
Parked IndiGo jets have choked bay spaces, bogging down departures, baggage flow, and on-time operations for fully functional carriers.
The unabated operational disruptions faced by IndiGo have taken a major hit at other airlines, with most of them witnessing a delay in flight arrivals and take-offs.
Talking to Greater Kashmir on condition of anonymity, a SpiceJet executive from Delhi said the grounded IndiGo aircraft on the bay area, the stretch on the tarmac where aircrafts are placed prior to being put into operations, are proving to be a hurdle for the smooth operations of other airlines.
“There are scores of the IndiGo flights that are parked in the bay area but are unable to be operated due to pilots not turning up. This has congested these spaces and surrounding areas, which affects flights of the fully operational airlines,” the executive said.
A Holding Bay is a designated area at an airport where aircraft can be held or parked temporarily before takeoff or after landing.
The IndiGo executive said, considering the fact that operational IndiGo flights have been facing a minimum delay of 4 to 5 hours, the baggage handling is also becoming a taxing task at the various airports.
“The baggage which is kept lying in the departure and arrival terminals of the delayed IndiGo flights is not just occupying space but wasting the time and energy of the ground staff and airport officials. We are hoping that this fiasco comes to an end soon,” he said.
