Dense fog continued to cripple air travel in the national capital on Tuesday, causing widespread disruption at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport for the second consecutive day. Officials said that by around 9:30 am, at least 118 flights had been cancelled, more than 200 flights were delayed, and 18 flights were diverted due to poor visibility.
According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), visibility at IGI Airport dropped to about 350 metres on Tuesday morning, confirming dense fog conditions across the city. The weather disturbance also affected train services, compounding travel difficulties for commuters across Delhi and the National Capital Region.
In response to the deteriorating conditions, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) issued an advisory warning passengers of possible delays at select airports in northern India. The authority urged travellers to stay in regular contact with airlines for real-time updates and to allow extra time for airport procedures. AAI also said that assistance teams had been deployed at affected airports to help stranded passengers.
Airlines, including IndiGo, had issued advance advisories late Monday night, cautioning passengers about early-morning fog impacting visibility at several airports such as Delhi, Amritsar, Chandigarh, Jammu, Kolkata, Ranchi, Guwahati and Hindon. IndiGo said its teams were closely monitoring weather conditions to minimise disruption, though sudden visibility drops could still affect operations.
Fog-related delays and cancellations were also reported on Monday, when 128 flights were cancelled and over 200 were delayed at IGI Airport before noon. IndiGo alone had cancelled around 80 flights across its network that day.
With dense fog expected to persist, airlines have advised passengers to frequently check flight status and plan their journeys accordingly.