Pothole on Mumbai airport runway: Repairs on, expect flight delays in evening

Brace for flight delays at the Mumbai airport on Monday evening, as the authorities plan to repair a pothole on the main runway.

The pothole surfaced between taxiways N1 and N3 on Sunday morning. While the airport operator, Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL), has not revealed the cause of the damage to the runway, sources said it could be a result of the rain since Friday evening.

Of the 930-odd operations at the city airport daily, 800 are at the main runway.

The main runway, which shuts down for repair and maintenance every Monday and Thursday between 1.45pm and 3.45pm, will remain closed till 5pm on Monday. During this period, the secondary runway, which can handle fewer flights, will be in operation. “The secondary runway will handle all operations from 1.45pm to 5pm,” said an MIAL spokesperson.

Airport officials said pothole repair was needed keeping the safety of passengers in mind. An Airport Authority of India (AAI) official said, “The routine Notice To Airmen (NOTAM) said the runway would be shut till 3.45pm. As it will now be extended by one more hour, the slotted flights will be delayed.”

Airlines said there were minor delays on Monday morning. “The flights were running 10 minutes behind schedule, considered normal for the city airport,” said an airport official.