COVID-19: In a first, Delhi's IGI Airport goes for extensive sanitation

COVID heroes are sanitizing the entire terminal buildings such as check-in area and counters, chairs, baggage belt, immigration counters, custom area, trolley, wash-rooms to maintain hygiene label.
Delhi airport (Photo | Major Gaurav Arya (Retd) Twitter)
Delhi airport (Photo | Major Gaurav Arya (Retd) Twitter)

NEW DELHI: Lockdown has come as an opportunity for Delhi airport as it is witnessing complete extensive sanitization of the entire terminal buildings for the first time since it became operational. 

At a time, when almost everyone is following a nationwide lockdown, some unsung heroes are working round-the-clock to sanitize the Delhi Airport. They are staying at the airport and in a way leading a quarantined life, as they are not going back home to meet their families.

These COVID heroes are engaged in extensive sanitization of the entire terminal buildings such as check-in area and counters, chairs, baggage belt, immigration counters, custom area, trolley, wash-rooms to maintain the hygiene label within the terminal.

Officials working at Delhi airport claimed that this is the first time an extensive sanitization work has been undertaken by the airport authority, since it has become operational. Members of terminal operations team and facilitation team are also working at odd hours to facilitate the arrival and departure of passengers of special flights within the terminal.

Apart from this, they are engaged in distribution of food and water to the arrived or departing passengers, managing the queue to get the immigration and security clearance faster. They are also present at the location where the passengers are, to facilitate in any crisis situations.

Moreover, Cityside team is managing the traffic outside the terminal to avoid any traffic congestions and airport rescue and firefighting team (ARFF) is always ready to handle any crises like any emergency landing at any runways.

After international flights were suspended on March 22, as many as 10 evacuation flights have been operated by various countries including India to fly home with their respective stranded citizens. The biggest aircraft used for evacuation was an Airbus 380, operated by Lufthansa, that flew with around 500 German nationals to Frankfurt.

Box: Personnel engaged in airport sanitisation 

  • Staff on duty @24 hours
  • Operations staff-12
  • Trolley-21
  • Cleaning-80
  • Security - 03
  • Land side Management (T3,T2,T1) - 140+50 at cargo terminal.
  • Inline Baggage -26
  • Airport Rescue and Fire Fighting (ARFF)-80
  • Airside operations - 70

List of special flight operations at Delhi Airport 

Arrival (March 24)

  • Mahan Air (Arrival)/0140hrs -Passengers-280

Departure (March 24)  

  • Aeroflot (SU-571)/0630hrs -Passengers -300

Departure (March 25)

  • Japan Airlines (JL-740)/2045hrs -Passengers-197
  • Ukraine (PQ-1911)/2215hrs - Passengers-98
  • Lufthansa (LH-9912)/0230hrs -Passengers-500

Departure (March 26)

  • AI-139 to Tel Aviv (Israel)/1530hrs - Passengers-300
  • OS-1023 to Vienna from Colombo/1835hrs-Passengers-175 (50 transit from Colombo)
  • PQ-1913 to Sharjah/2155hrs - Passengers-140

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