IndiGo Airlines (6E, Delhi International) has informed Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) that it will not move part of its operations from Terminal 1 to Terminal 2 as requested, saying that to do so will cause confusion for its passengers, reports the Press Trust of India. The move is needed for DIAL to increase capacity at T1, which is already over-burdened.
DIAL has been working on plans to upgrade Delhi International airport, doubling capacity at T1 from 20 million to 40 million. During the construction phase, movements at T1 need to be reduced, and so IndiGo, SpiceJet (SG, Delhi International) and GoAir (Mumbai International) were asked to shift one-third of their flights to T1. But IndiGo has come out against the move, saying that they are "not agreeable" to splitting their operations between the two terminals.
"We reserve our rights to make a detailed representation on this matter and take any other action that we may consider necessary in the interest of our passengers," the airline said.
Originally, the airlines had until July 15 to decide upon a mutually agreeable solution. One suggestion included shifting all of SpiceJet and GoAir's operations to T2, allowing IndiGo to remain at T1. However, this was rejected by the two airlines, reports the Economic Times of India. In a bid to find a solution that would not favour one airline over another, the Ministry of Civil Aviation proposed the one-third plan, but an unnamed official has said that that has only over-complicated things.
"This was an issue between airlines and the airport operator and would have been handled best between them," the official told the Economic Times.
There is currently no metro connection between the two terminals, but DIAL will supply a bus service for transiting passengers.
