Dense Fog Engulfs Delhi, Causing Flight Disruptions; Airlines Warn Flyers Of Delays

Northern India faces cold winds, and reduced visibility due to dense fog, disrupting morning flight operations. SpiceJet flights diverted to Jaipur; orange alert issued.

The northern part of the country is currently experiencing cold winds that have brought down the mercury, along with visibility. The dense fog impacted visibility, thereby disrupting flight operations in the morning. While the temperature was recorded at 7.8 degree Celsius, an orange alert was issued by the Indian Meteorological department. Two flights operated by SpiceJet were diverted in the morning as they couldn’t land given the bad weather conditions. The flights were diverted to Jaipur between 0900 and 0915 hours.

Considering the low-visibility conditions at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport, airlines have started to issue warnings to flyers. SpiceJet took it to the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), urging passengers to check the status of their flights before heading to the airport. A similar situation of flight diversion, subject to low visibility, was also observed at Jaipur and Lucknow airports.

SpiceJet Suffers Flight Delays

SpiceJet posted, “#WeatherUpdate: Due to bad weather in Delhi(DEL), all departures/arrivals and their consequential flights may get affected. Passengers are requested to keep a check on their flight status.”

#WeatherUpdate: Due to bad weather in Delhi(DEL), all departures/arrivals and their consequential flights may get affected. Passengers are requested to keep a check on their flight status via https://t.co/VkU7yLjrw0. — SpiceJet (@flyspicejet) December 27, 2023

IndiGo Alerts Of Flight Delays

Similarly, IndiGo shared, “#6ETravelAdvisory: Due to bad weather in #Lucknow, flight departures and arrivals are getting impacted. Please check your flight status.”

#6ETravelAdvisory: Due to bad weather in #Lucknow, flight departures and arrivals are getting impacted. Please check your flight status by visiting https://t.co/TQCzzykjgA. — IndiGo (@IndiGo6E) December 26, 2023

Flight Diversions At IGI, Delhi

On tuesday, Delhi airport recorded 12 flights diversion during the early morning between 0600 and 1200 hrs. While 11 of these flights were diverted to Jaipur, one was diverted to land in Lucknow. Also, over 30 flights were delayed as the visibility reduced to inoperable conditions. Vistara also reported multiple flight diversions across various sectors in India.

Kind attention to all flyers!#Fog #FogAlert #DelhiAirport pic.twitter.com/alYrkYgijG — Delhi Airport (@DelhiAirport) December 26, 2023

DIAL's Fog Alert

Also, DIAL posted on X, sharing a fog alert, revealing that flight not compliant with CAT III are likely to get affected. The CAT III compliant flights, however, can land even the visibility is low. "Passengers are requested to contact the airline concerned for updated flight information. Any inconvenience caused is deeply regretted," posted DIAL on X.