Dense fog in north India delays several Delhi-bound flights

Pune: Heavy fog in northern India delayed several inbound and outbound flights from/to Delhi and other places on Saturday morning.

A Delhi-bound SpiceJet flight slated to take off from the city around 8.05am was delayed by over two hours.

Similarly, an Air India flight scheduled to land in Pune from Delhi at 8.40am was delayed by almost three-and-a-half hours, an airport official said.

Between 9.30am and 10.40am, five departing flights to different destinations — four to Delhi and one to Chandigarh — were delayed in the range of an hour-and-a-half to almost four hours.

During the same time period, three inbound flights from Delhi and one from Chandigarh were delayed.

The delays continued later in the day.

Two afternoon flights to the national capital took off around 4.50pm and 5.40pm on Saturday .

Similarly, two flights arriving in Pune from Delhi, during the same time, got delayed.

Airport sources said owing to dense fog in the national capital, more than 100 flights to and from Delhi had been heavily impacted.

“I did not know about the delay, nor did the airline inform me. It was sudden and very frustrating. Since this was a weather phenomenon, there is nothing much we can do about it,” ” a Chandigarh-bound passenger told TOI.

“I am just worried about the wait as my mother, a senior citizen, is travelling with me,” the passenger added.

Some flyers complained about the facilities, though. “Air India’s AI851 is delayed by more than three hours but no arrangement for water and snacks for old people and children… Passengers have been left at their own fate (sic),” Sharmendra, a flyer, wrote on Twitter.

Different airlines put up advisories on their social media pages about their flights to and from different destinations in north India seeing delays.

SpiceJet, from the wee hours, cautioned travellers about delay in flights to and from places like Delhi, Varanasi, Kanpur and Surat because of bad weather.

Other airlines, like IndiGo and GoAir, also put out similar advisories.