Officials said the malfunction prevented air traffic controllers from receiving flight plans electronically, forcing them to prepare flight details manually using previously stored data. This manual process has slowed operations significantly, causing average delays of about 50 minutes on departures, according to flight-tracking portal Flightradar24.
Airport authorities and the Airports Authority of India (AAI) said technical teams are working to restore the system at the earliest. “Our engineers are addressing the issue on priority to resume normal functioning,” an AAI official said.
The disruption affected multiple airlines, including Air India, IndiGo, and SpiceJet, all of which issued passenger advisories acknowledging delays and urging travellers to check flight status before heading to the airport. IGIA, India’s busiest airport, handles roughly 1,500 flights daily, amplifying the impact of the glitch.
Meanwhile, aviation officials confirmed that the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has been briefed about the incident. The regulator is monitoring the situation closely.
Adding to aviation concerns, sources revealed that for the past week, aircraft operating within a 100-km radius of Delhi have reported fake GPS alertsbelieved to be due to “GPS spoofing.” Such cyber interference sends false navigation signals to aircraft, potentially misleading pilots about their location. The DGCA has launched a probe into the matter, though officials clarified there is no evidence yet linking the spoofing incidents to Thursday’s system failure..
