CHENNAI: A few incidents of falling ceiling panels notwithstanding, the Chennai Airport has gained ground in the latest Airport Service Quality survey conducted across airports in India. The ASQ rating has improved from 3.2 to 4.3/5, which is a considerable improvement as most of the parameters are directly linked to user utilities like toilets and terminal facilities. The survey is conducted every quarter and published by Airports Authority of India (AAI), based on user feedback across various parameters.
The improvement in the ASQ survey has meant that Chennai’s rank among the best rated airports in the country has gone one step up from 60 to 59. “It shows that our committed effort to improve the quality of the terminals is paying off. There is quite a distance to go but we are certainly headed in the right direction,” said Captain Deepak Shastri, Chennai Airport Director. The number of incidents of glass breakage have also come down, improving the perception of the airport to a great extent.
Where toilets used to be a major area for concern earlier, AAI’s decision to improve two blocks — one each in the domestic and the international — has gone down well. The number of complaints about wet, dirty, unmaintained toilets at the airport has come down considerably. “There is a marked change in the cleanliness about the toilets, but I still believe that a lot more needs to be done to ensure that they are not wet perennially, so that they are on a par with international airports,” said Sajan Krishnan, a frequent flier who works as a medical researcher.
Though the Airport may be on the cusp of moving into a private player’s hands after the bidding on May 27, the improvements made for the Global Investor’s Meet before it was rescheduled have also impressed users. AAI sources revealed that the airport had improved user feedback on general cleanliness in the exterior areas and also on the parking module that has been adapted.