(LiveMint)
Over 350 planes flying into and out of Delhi were delayed, diverted or cancelled as the season’s “worst” fog reduced visibility to 50 metres at the Indira Gandhi International Airport on New Year’s eve. Over 270 flights were delayed, nearly 50 diverted and an estimated 35 cancelled. No flight could take off from the airport here for nearly four hours between 7.30am and 11.05am on Sunday, according to an airport official.
Take-offs from the IGI Airport require a minimum visibility range of 125 metres. However, as Delhi airport has advanced technology for low-visibility landings, called the CAT IIIB system (short for category three), aircraft qualified to land in visibility of 25-50 metres could arrive. There were, however, nearly 50 diversions to nearby airports as many pilots deployed by airlines were not trained in CAT IIIB instrument landing system, said a person familiar with the matter, on the condition of anonymity.
“Runway visibility since 5.30 AM has been between 50-75 metres. This is so far the worst fog we have experienced this year,” R.K. Jenamani, director, India Meteorological Department, Delhi area and IGI Airport, said. An official from the Met department termed it the “worst” fog of the season. While visibility improved to 2,000 metres later in the day and operations were restored to normal, there were consequential delays throughout the day and a waiting time of up to six hours was common.
