After Delhi, technical glitch hits Mumbai airport, hundreds of flights disrupted across India
PTC Web Desk: Flight operations at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) faced major disruptions on Friday due to a technical glitch, just hours after a similar failure at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) led to widespread delays affecting more than 300 flights.
According to an advisory issued by the Mumbai airport, the disruption stemmed from a malfunction in Delhi’s Automatic Message Switching System (AMSS), a crucial network used in air traffic control (ATC) and flight planning. The system is currently under repair, and the authorities are working to fully restore normal operations. Passengers have been advised to remain in contact with their respective airlines for the latest updates on flight timings and departures.
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) confirmed that the glitch forced ATC officials to switch to partial manual operations, slowing flight coordination and impacting air traffic not only in Delhi and Mumbai but also in Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Pune.
The disruption, which began late Thursday, affected the Automatic Message Switching System (AMSS), a communication backbone that supplies data to the Auto Track System (ATS), responsible for generating flight plans for controllers. With the automated network offline, controllers had to manually process flight plans, causing congestion in the airspace and delays on the ground.
An aviation expert explained that the system failure meant flight plans had to be keyed in manually, which slowed down operations considerably. The glitch also affected the Automatic Terminal Information System (ATIS), which compiles nationwide weather updates, forcing even meteorological data to be entered manually.
A senior airport official confirmed that the issue originated from the AMSS system, noting, “Controllers are preparing flight plans manually, which is taking significant time.”
As India’s busiest airport, handling over 1,500 daily flight movements, IGIA witnessed major congestion throughout the morning. According to Flightradar24, average departure delays stood at 45 to 50 minutes by 9 am.
Authorities have assured that technical teams are working on an urgent basis to restore full automation and minimise passenger inconvenience.
- With inputs from agencies
