The newly constructed state-of-the-art arrival terminal at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport, Terminal 1, will become operational from Thursday morning.
The new terminal is being made operational with the arrival of an IndiGo flight from Goa at 3:20 am on Thursday morning where passengers will be the first to experience the state-of-the-art, modernised and developed arrival hall at the Terminal 1 building.
With the opening of the new arrival Terminal, all arrival operations of Terminal 1 (that operates IndiGo and SpiceJet flights) will shift from the existing facility to the new one. Departure operations will
however continue from the existing terminal, i.e., Terminal 1D, but will eventually be integrated with the new arrival hall post completion of the expansion work.
The Delhi Airport operated by the GMR group has undertaken large-scale expansion and redevelopment of the airport and the development of Terminal 1 arrival section is also a part of its expansion project. According to GMR, the new arrival terminal will provide a distinctive experience to the “meeters and greeters” with a contemporary meet and greet zone that has been curated keeping in mind to provide enhanced experience to passengers.
Apart from this, the new arrival terminal will also have a plush forecourt, including new landscaping and kiosks for food and beverage, retail outlets, and expanded parking area for cars, and more.
GMR is further said to have eased customer woes in finding cab services post their arrival at the terminal—the pickup lanes outside the Arrival terminal have been realigned and widened with three additional lanes, taking the total number of lanes to 11. This will ease vehicle traffic congestion and significantly improve passenger experience and convenience during pickup.
“In line with its commitment to enhance passenger experience with safe, secured (sic) and sustainable infrastructural facilities, Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL), has built the new Terminal 1 Arrivals as part of Delhi Airport’s ongoing phase 3A Expansion project, the large-scale development and modernization plan for IGI Airport. Developed by DIAL, the terminal emanates the elegance of aesthetics meeting innovation,” GMR said in a statement.
The arrival terminal has also been built as a green building keeping globally renowned LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) green building standards in mind. “LEED provides a framework for healthy, efficient, carbon and cost-saving green buildings. As part of it, DIAL has used the daylight concept in the terminal building, which will reduce electricity consumption, as there will be ample natural light during the day. In addition, lighting fixtures and equipment like HVAC and baggage belts are energy efficient and thus consume less power.” GMR said.
The CEO of DIAL, Videh Kumar Jaipuriar said, “T1 at Delhi airport will now offer a distinctive experience to arriving passengers and also to those coming in to meet and greet the arriving passengers. The terminal includes contemporary zones for comfort and leisure, eco-friendly features like maximum use of daylight concept and offers an astute combination of green buildings and superior operational processes delivering enhanced passenger experience.”
