National Desk: Dense fog and smog disrupted air traffic at Indira Gandhi International Airport on Wednesday morning, severely impacting flight operations in the national capital. Extremely low visibility during early hours led to the cancellation of 16 flights, while the schedules of more than 500 flights had to be altered.
According to reports, visibility dropped below 200 metres between 4:30 am and 8:30 am. The situation worsened further between 6:30 am and 7:00 am, when visibility fell to just 50 metres. As a result, the average delay for flights was around 34 minutes, with some flights delayed anywhere between 29 minutes and nearly 6.5 hours.
The disruption also affected a Ranchi-bound flight scheduled to depart at 6:45 am. Due to technical issues and delays in clearance from Air Traffic Control (ATC), the flight could only take off around 1:20 pm, adding to passenger inconvenience.
Airlines and airport operator Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) have advised passengers to check the latest status of their flights before heading to the airport. Meanwhile, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a warning of light to moderate fog on December 25 and 26, indicating that flight operations may continue to be affected over the next few days.
