New Delhi: SkyCast, an advanced integrated aviation weather intelligence and nowcasting facility, was inaugurated at Indira Gandhi International Airport on Friday. Union Minister of State for Science and Technology and Earth Sciences Jitendra Singh described it as India's first SkyCast System, noting that only 18 such advanced systems exist worldwide, making India the 19th country to deploy this integrated atmospheric remote sensing technology for aviation weather monitoring.
Expansion Plans
After the installation at IGI Airport Delhi, the second SkyCast facility will be established at Jewar Airport, followed by expansion to other airports across India. Singh stated that passengers can anticipate a future where flight disruptions caused by fog and turbulence will significantly decrease.
Advanced Alerts
The system provides advance alerts to aircrew and pilots within short time windows of approximately three hours, enabling them to determine the safest landing times and avoid unnecessary diversions, cancellations, and delays. The minister emphasized that India is transitioning toward an era of fog-free flights through scientific innovation and advanced weather technologies.
Technical Capabilities
Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL), the airport operator, explained that SkyCast is a next-generation aviation meteorological platform integrating advanced remote sensing technologies, atmospheric profiling systems, and intelligent nowcasting tools. It continuously tracks rapidly evolving weather conditions that may affect flight operations. The facility enables real-time monitoring of critical atmospheric parameters, including temperature and humidity profiles, water vapor density, cloud liquid water content, wind speed and direction, vertical wind structures, and near-surface high-resolution wind observations. The system assesses atmospheric conditions from the surface up to nearly 10 km altitude for thermodynamic profiling and several kilometers for wind observations. DIAL noted that this significantly enhances the ability of meteorologists and aviation stakeholders to accurately track and respond to rapidly changing weather systems.
Stakeholder Benefits
Videh Kumar Jaipuriar, CEO of DIAL, remarked that weather can change very quickly, and access to accurate, real-time information makes a real difference on the ground and in the air. This system will help teams, pilots, and air traffic controllers make quicker, more informed decisions, ultimately ensuring smoother and safer journeys for passengers.
Scientific Foundation
Officials stated that the scientific foundation of SkyCast comes from the Winter Fog Experiment (WiFEX), jointly initiated by IITM and IMD under the Ministry of Earth Sciences at IGI Airport in 2015.
