Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi, India's busiest handling over 1,500 daily flights, is steadily returning to normal nearly 36 hours after a technical failure crippled its Air Traffic Control (ATC) system. The glitch in the Automatic Message Switching System (AMSS), detected Thursday evening during a routine software upgrade, halted automated flight plan processing and forced manual operations. Flightradar24 data shows Saturday's delays dropped sharply to 129—53 arrivals and 76 departures—compared to nearly 800 on Friday, with average waits now at five minutes for arrivals and 19 for departures.

The outage triggered a cascade of disruptions across northern India. Thursday night saw over 500 delays, surging to 800 by Friday with 45-60 minute holds due to airspace congestion and parking shortages. International flights like ITA Airways to Rome and Virgin Atlantic to London faced two-hour setbacks, while domestic carriers including IndiGo, Air India, SpiceJet, and Akasa issued warnings. Thousands of passengers waited hours, some confined to tarmacs, voicing complaints on social media about poor updates. Ripple effects hit Mumbai (26 delays), Hyderabad (13), and Kolkata (18) airports.

Delhi Airport's morning statement confirmed gradual improvement, with operations normalizing and teams minimizing inconveniences. IndiGo, commanding 60% of domestic traffic, noted the AMSS resolution and progressive restoration, though congestion may linger. Airports Authority of India (AAI) assured safety was never at risk, as the issue affected only pre-departure messaging—no airborne flights were impacted. A high-level review by Civil Aviation Secretary and AAI officials directed fixes, restoring the system by late Friday despite backlogs.

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Government sources ruled out a cyberattack, confirming the fault arose during the upgrade, echoing Europe's September ransomware woes. Delhi processed 78 million passengers in 2024, ranking ninth globally, and this incident exposes vulnerabilities in its booming sector.

Full recovery is expected soon, but travelers should check airline apps for updates amid winter fog risks. The $10-15 million productivity loss highlights the need for enhanced ATC redundancies in India's post-pandemic aviation surge.

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