Delhi's new ATC tower to beat Qutub minar by height

New Delhi, Jul 11: The Delhi airport is all set to defeat the world's tallest brick minaret, Qutub Minar (height of 72.5 meters) by constructing the tallest Air Traffic Control (ATC) tower in the country, that would be much taller than the Minar. The new ATC tower, expected to cost Rs 350 crore is planned to open by November 2013.

The new ATC tower that is supposed to be almost the double of the existing ATC tower will be built at a more centralised location at the airport, so that air traffic controllers can have a clear view of all the three runways, aprons and taxiways.

"Even on a clear day, the new runway is not properly visible from the ATC tower," said a senior ATC official. "Though all movements are monitored through radar, a clear view by the naked eye can sometimes help avert mishaps if an animal strays on the runway," he added.

The new ATC tower will be situated in the middle of the four runways and, with its commanding height, will not miss an inch of the area of the sprawling 5,000 acre airport.

"Construction of a new ATC tower was not in the original master plan of Delhi Airport in the current phase. However, at the insistence of the Airports Authority of India and the Ministry of Civil Aviation, we have agreed to undertake the project in the current phase," said a DIAL spokesman.

He also added that the schedule agreed envisages completion of the civil work by November 2012 that would be followed by installation of the ATC equipment and testing, leading to the commencement of operations from Nov 2013.

OneIndia News