Chennai Airport Passengers Demand More Aerobridges After IndiGo Flight Remote Parking

Passengers at Chennai Airport are demanding the installation of more aerobridges and better utilization of existing facilities following a recent incident on Thursday night where an IndiGo flight was parked at a remote bay. The incident forced around 180 travellers to disembark using stairs and crowded shuttle buses despite several aerobridges appearing to be vacant.

The demand highlights a significant infrastructure gap at the airport, which currently has more than 100 aircraft parking bays but only 11 aerobridges. Of these, six are located in the domestic terminal at bays 19 to 24, and five are in the international terminal at bays 26 to 30. While work is underway to add two more aerobridges, passengers argue the current capacity is severely lacking.

The frequent use of remote bays has caused severe inconvenience to travellers, particularly elderly passengers, persons with disabilities, women with children, and those with health issues. When aircraft are parked at remote bays, passengers must descend mobile stairs and board shuttle buses to reach the terminal, exposing them to extreme summer heat and monsoon rains.

The issue gained fresh attention on Thursday night after an IndiGo flight from Mumbai arrived at the airport. Passengers questioned why the aircraft was assigned to an open parking stand when three aerobridges nearby appeared to be unused. Some passengers raised the issue with IndiGo staff and Chennai airport officials before posting their complaints on social media.

In response to queries on social media, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) stated that the flight had initially been allocated bay 19, which is equipped with an aerobridge. However, the AAI claimed the aircraft was reassigned to remote bay 25 at the specific request of IndiGo. IndiGo did not offer a response regarding the decision.

Aerobridges are primarily designed for larger aircraft like Airbus and Boeing jets, while smaller ATR aircraft cannot use them. Passengers on larger flights expect direct terminal access and have urged airport authorities to expedite the installation of more aerobridges while ensuring existing ones are fully utilized.