IGI Airport Terminal 3

CA Manish K Dhoot (CA, B. Com, NCFM, CPCM) (5015 Points)

03 July 2010  

 

Like every good host, Delhi is putting out its welcome mats at the Indira Gandhi international Airport for the one lakh visitors expected during the Commonwealth Games in October.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Their first view of the Capital will be the massive new Terminal 3 (T3) which will not only welcome the city’s guests for the 12-day mega sporting event, it will also solve Delhi’s aviation needs for the coming years.

 

 

India’s busiest airport now has the country’s biggest and the world’s eighth-largest airport in Terminal 3.

 

Till about two years ago, flying out of Delhi was a dreadful thought for most passengers, especially in winters when the fog set in. The now demolished domestic departure terminal 1B, built during World War II, was bursting at the seams with Delhi’s ever-increasing air traffic. Finding a place to sit during peak hours used to be a struggle.

At T3, spread over 5.4 million sq ft, housing 21,500 sq metres of retail space offering a shopping bonanza, finding a comfortable seat will be the last thing on a passenger’s mind.

At present, IGI Airport accommodates 27 million air passengers every year in its two domestic and oneinternational terminal. T3 alone will handle 34 million passengers every year, which will take care of the projected increase in footfalls at least till 2013.

The enormous size of T3 also means passengers will have to cover huge distances — from one end to another, its piers are separated by 1.2 km. This is where the travelators come into play. There will be 97 automated walkways at T3, one of the first in India.

The facilities being provided at T3 are not only an improvement over the existing terminals at the IGI Airport, but also mean that Delhi will have perhaps the best airport terminal in the country — both in size and style.