NEW DELHI 30 May : Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology and Earth Sciences Jitendra Singh on Friday inaugurated India’s first “SkyCast System” here at Indira Gandhi International Airport, calling it the beginning of a new era in Indian aviation.
The Minister informed that only 18 such advanced systems exist worldwide so far. India has become the 19th country in the world to install this integrated atmospheric remote sensing system for aviation weather monitoring.
After IGI Airport, the second such facility will come up at Jewar Airport, followed by expansion to other airports across India, he said.The inauguration was held at IGI Airport in the presence of the Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Dr. M. Ravichandran; senior officials from MoES, India Meteorological Department (IMD), Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), GMR and representatives from the aviation sector.
Dr. Singh inaugurated the SkyCast System and Fog Observatory facility at Glide Path 10, followed by a technical briefing and demonstration by IITM scientists.
He credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision for “Mission Mausam” for making such futuristic weather infrastructure possible.
Dr. Singh said SkyCast will bring a major transformation in aviation safety by providing real-time information to pilots and aviation operators during critical weather situations.
The Minister said passengers can look forward to a future where flight disruptions caused by fog and turbulence will significantly decrease. The system will provide advance alerts to aircrew and pilots even within short time windows of around three hours. This enables them to decide the safest time for landing and avoid unnecessary diversions, cancellations and delays.
Dr. Singh said SkyCast is one of the biggest landmarks in India’s aviation history as it combines multiple atmospheric observation technologies for fog monitoring, turbulence detection and high-impact weather forecasting.The system integrates state-of-the-art atmospheric remote sensing technologies, including Radar Wind Profiler, SODAR, Microwave Radiometer, Ground-based Fog Aerosol Spectrometer (GFAS) and CL61 Lidar-based Ceilometer to provide comprehensive real-time atmospheric intelligence.
He said the facility will strengthen monitoring and warning capabilities across runways, making take-offs and landings safer. ( PIB )
