SOURCE: AFI
India is making a significant stride towards streamlining its airspace management. The country is planning to consolidate its four Flight Information Regions (FIRs) – currently located in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Chennai – into a single, unified airspace centered around Nagpur. This centralized Air Traffic Management (ATM) system, called Indian Single Sky Harmonized ATM (ISHAN), will be headquartered in Nagpur due to its central location within India.
The move is expected to bring several benefits to the aviation sector. Enhanced safety, reduced carbon emissions, and more fuel-efficient flight paths are all anticipated outcomes. This will be achieved by optimizing airspace usage, minimizing the distance between flights (separation), and implementing more efficient routes.
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has commissioned a Detailed Project Report (DPR) to assess the feasibility of ISHAN. The DPR will also explore the best available technologies in both the Indian and global markets to implement this ambitious project.
This initiative underscores India’s role as a major air navigation service provider in the Asia-Pacific region. Currently, India manages over 2.8 million square nautical miles of airspace through four FIRs and a sub-FIR in Guwahati. Furthermore, India shares its FIRs with twelve neighboring countries, making efficient airspace management even more crucial.