KUWAIT: A sandstorm which hit Kuwait Tuesday resulted in an error in the instrument landing system (ILS) at the Kuwait International Airport.
Aviation traffic for arriving planes stopped completely for almost two hours
The incident forced seven flights to be diverted to Dammam in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, says a report quoting a source with knowledge of the issue.
“Aviation traffic for arriving planes stopped completely for almost two hours during the sandstorms, which caused the ILS to go out of order”, said the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) insider who spoke on the condition of anonymity. The system helps planes land in poor weather conditions.
On Tuesday, the sandstorm rendered visibility to 500 meters, a range the source said would still enable planes to land safely if the ILS was working properly.
“The fact that seven planes had to change route is further proof that the system was out of order”, he said. The DGCA Operations Manager, Essam Al-Zamel, confirmed that aviation traffic for arriving planes stopped between 7:25 AM and 9:35 AM on Tuesday, but departing planes flew normally.
Read the full Kuwait Times story here….
Source: Al-Qabas
Wednesday 11th April 2012
The Airport Informer 