NEW DELHI: Starting July, most transfers at Delhi airport between Terminals 1 and 3, and Terminals 1 and 2 will occur via the airside, providing significant relief to connecting passengers. Only the adjacent Terminals 2 and 3 will continue to see passengers shuttling between them from the cityside with a relatively short walk.
Understanding Airside and Current Challenges
The airside is the restricted operational area of an airport beyond the terminal building, including aprons, taxiways, runways, and parking stands. Currently, transfers between T3/T2 and T1 are conducted via DTC buses from the cityside, often caught in peak traffic, causing major inconvenience for transit passengers. The upcoming change, implemented exactly two decades after Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) went the public-private partnership (PPP) way, is a key part of the aviation ministry's plan to initiate hub-and-spoke operations from the first week of June. This will allow seamless connectivity for transit passengers, similar to hubs like Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Doha, Singapore Changi, London Heathrow, and New York JFK.
Implementation Timeline and Process
Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) expects to receive approval from the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) by the end of May. Implementation could take about a month, so airside transfers should start from late June or early July. DIAL will deploy buses on the airside to transport passengers between T1 and T3, facilitating international-to-domestic (I-to-D), domestic-to-international (D-to-I), and domestic-to-domestic (D-to-D) transfers. Similarly, buses will operate between T1 and T2, handling all domestic-to-domestic transfers, as T3 is IGIA's only integrated international-cum-domestic terminal.
Terminal Configurations
T1 will remain exclusively domestic due to its straight, long shape, which makes segregating domestic and international traffic virtually impossible. The 1986-era T2, originally all international and responsible for renaming the airport from Palam to IGI, will continue as domestic in its remaining years. T4, to be built in T2's place in the next decade, will become the airport's second terminal handling both domestic and international flights. T3 has served this dual role since 2010.
Operational Details of Airside Transfers
DIAL will deploy buses on IGIA's internal periphery, operating on the airside with speed governors set to a maximum of 20 kmph. A one-way journey will take approximately 20 minutes. BCAS, CISF, airlines, DIAL, and other stakeholders are collaborating to implement the plan, aiming to make IGIA a true hub enabling seamless transfers. BCAS is closely monitoring passenger flow upon entering a terminal from the airside, especially at T3, to prevent any mix-up of domestic and international passengers. The ministry's hub policy mandates that transit passengers receive boarding cards clearly marked D and I at the origin airport for their connecting flights.
Impact on Hub-and-Spoke Operations
Airside transfers are crucial for the hub-and-spoke plans at IGIA. At T3, a domestic pier has been converted to an international one, giving the terminal three piers for international flights and one for domestic, raising its annual international passenger handling capacity to over 30 million. Apart from international passengers originating from Delhi, transit flyers from T1 and T2 will feed wide-body aircraft heading to various global destinations from T3, and the same will apply for return flights.
Background and Future Plans
The management, operation, and development of Delhi Airport were handed over to the GMR Group two decades ago for 30 years, extendable by another 30 years. During this period, IGIA has seen two new terminals (T1 and T3) and two new runways, along with supporting infrastructure like an elevated taxiway and a new ATC tower, making it India's busiest and one of the world's top 10 busiest airports. However, despite growing traffic and increasing transfer passengers, IGIA still lacks an air train. The plan for an automated people mover has remained on paper for about a decade and may only become a reality when GMR's likely second 30-year concession period begins in May 2036. In the prolonged absence of an air train, passengers currently transit between T3 and T1/2, nearly 9 km apart, via DTC buses from the cityside with their luggage, which is less than ideal for a world-class airport.
Comparison with Other Hubs
Dubai, the hub closest to IGIA, also transfers passengers between its dedicated Emirates terminal and the Flydubai terminal using buses plying on the airside. While offering great views of planes landing, taking off, and taxiing, the journey can feel lengthy due to speed restrictions on airside vehicles. Starting July, passengers at Delhi airport can expect similar views from low-speed buses as they transfer between terminals.
