PUNE: Chaos prevailed at the airport on Saturday with many flyers on the verge of missing their flights due to crowded check-in and security check counters, while arriving passengers were forced to wait up to half-an-hour for RT-PCR verification.
According to airport officials, runway closure from 11am-3pm for maintenance and bunching of arriving flights led to crowding and delays. On Saturday, 78 flights operated at the Pune airport as against 116 on Friday.
Uploading a video on social media of a long queue at the arrival bay, a passenger wrote that it was people waiting to show RT-PCR reports. “The waiting time was 20-30 minutes with just two staffers checking certificates. There was also little regard for social distancing,” he said.
“I got off the aircraft around 10.30am but exited the airport only past 11.15am,” said another flyer.
The official handle of the Pune airport on Twitter, responding to the passenger who uploaded the video, said bunching of arrival flights led to rush during exit RT-PCR checks.
“Our teams are available to clear the queues as quickly as possible. We are also reviewing the process for further improvement. On Saturdays, there is a runway closure from 11am to 3pm which resulted in the bunching of arriving flights before 11am,” said the airport Twitter handle.
Another flyer, Keshav Lagwal, said despite coming to the airport two hours in advance, people were on the verge of missing their flights. “I almost missed my flight and had to request other passengers to jump the queue. There was no one to help,” said Lagwal.
Earlier, Pune airport director Santosh Dhoke had said that space was the biggest challenge for the airport. On Friday, Union transport minister Nitin Gadkari said the Centre’s infrastructure committee would soon approve the transfer of 13 acres of land in lieu of land in Chandigarh for the airport’s expansion plans.
Another flyer, however, sought to know about the status of the proposed airport at Purandar. “Why has the state government forgotten about the new airport project in Purandar and why is it pushing for the expansion of this facility?” said the flyer.
