12 flights diverted, over 200 delayed due to dense fog in national capital

NEW DELHI: Flight operations remained severely affected for the second day in a row on Tuesday at the Delhi airport as 12 flights, one international and 11 domestic were diverted to different airports due to dense fog, airport officials said.

Meanwhile, over 200 domestic flights suffered a delay. The flights were diverted to airports at Jaipur and Lucknow, officials said, adding that among them was a flight arriving from Saudi Arabia. “All flights were scheduled to land at Delhi airport between 6 am to 12 noon,” an official said.

Besides, over 250 flights were delayed as the visibility hit a low of 50 meters at the airport. The city recorded a minimum temperature of 7 degrees Celsius on Tuesday morning.

According to the official data, 60 international flights headed to and from Warsaw, Dubai, Kuwait, Kathmandu, London, Mauritius, Baku, Abu Dhabi, Milan, Addis Ababa, Doha and other locations were among the flights delayed.

The data show that flights taking off from the airport in the wee hours of Wednesday and early morning have also been delayed by several hours. A passenger advisory has asked flyers to contact the airline concerned for updated flight information.

Officials said that the authorities have taken a range of measures to provide comfort to the passengers who face delays in their flights. “Temporary help desks have been set up and additional manpower has been deployed to manage the crowds. Ground staff has been provided with high visibility jackets, public address systems and radio transmission sets for better coordination and communication.

The staff, deployed at critical positions, will facilitate passenger movement and provide updated information,” a senior official said. Officials said that the authorities have taken a range of measures to provide comfort to the passengers who face delays in their flights.

Visibility is poor in city, AQI worsens  

A thick blanket of fog engulfed the city on Tuesday morning, while the mercury dipped to 7 degrees Celsius, nearly a notch below the season’s normal.

Low visibility due to the dense fog was reported from several areas of the city, such as Safdarjung, Anand Vihar and India Gate. The visibility recorded at the weather station at Safdarjung was 200 metres at 5:30 am. It was 100 metres at Palam.

The arrival of 14 trains was also delayed due to the foggy conditions. According to a weather forecast, very dense fog is likely to be witnessed in isolated pockets of Delhi and surrounding areas.

Meanwhile, with a reading of 374, the Air Quality Index of the national capital remained in the “very poor” category at 9:05 am.