Ever wondered how long it takes to clean an aeroplane? Every day, more than 100 aircraft are washed, cleaned, dried and kept them ready for flying at Indira Gandhi International Airport. And it takes about 10 hours to complete the process for each plane.

Now, the airport operator is planning to do away with this conventional, time-consuming method. DIAL and Air India SATS have joined hands to bring in a new technology from Sweden, which will use robotic arms to wash and clean an aircraft inside out. This will save time, helping the airlines to increase their frequency. Officials said the new method would be cheaper than the manual one being used currently.

At present, it is like washing 20 cars at a time. More than 20 people work for 10 hours at a stretch, ensuring that every bit of the aircraft is clean, in order to provide the flyers with the best hygiene possible. However, the manual workforce cannot match the efficiency of a machine. Along with better vacuum cleaning, pressure washing and drying of delicate areas, the new technology will help cut down the current cost drastically.

The new system is likely to start early next year. The facility will be available at Terminal 3 of the Indira Gandhi International Airport. The machine, Nordic Dino, will be procured from a Swedish company. 

According to DIAL, airports in Qatar, the UK and Nordic region are already using this automated method. Airlines such as Vistara, Air India, SpiceJet and IndiGo—which use IGI Airport as their hub—are expected to be the biggest beneficiary of the facility.

An Air India spokesperson exuded confidence that the facility would be very effective and cut down the cleaning time by half. At present, it takes 10 hours for cleaning airplanes. With the new technology in place, the same work can be done in four hours with better results.

This facility will significantly add to the apron safety, improved aircraft availability and cost savings.

Source: Times of India