Thick winter fog in Lucknow created a chaotic scenario in the skies, leading to a major flight disruption for an Air India Express aircraft. Over two separate mornings, the same Boeing 737 MAX 8 was forced into lengthy holding patterns, circling the city a staggering 28 times without ever managing to touch down.
Two Mornings of Frustrating Hovering
The ordeal began on January 2, when flight IX2171 arrived over Lucknow at 6:18 am. Confronted with severely reduced visibility, the pilots entered a holding pattern, hoping for the fog to lift. For the next 93 minutes, the jet looped over the city 17 times before the crew finally gave up and returned to Delhi.
History repeated itself just two days later on January 4. The same aircraft, operating as flight IX217 from Delhi, reached Lucknow at 6:42 am. The situation was, if anything, worse. The critical Runway Visual Range (RVR) was measured at a mere 125 metres.
Safety Rules Force a Return
This reading was far below the mandatory minimum of 150 metres set by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) for a safe landing. Adhering strictly to these safety protocols, the pilots continued to hold. For 78 minutes, until 8:01 am, the aircraft traced 11 more circles above the city. With no improvement in conditions, the flight was compelled to turn back, landing safely in Delhi at 8:55 am.
Wider Ripple Effects of Dense Fog
The disruptive fog did not impact only the Air India Express flights. Other arrivals at Lucknow's Chaudhary Charan Singh International Airport also faced significant delays. SalamAir flight OV705 from Muscat landed over 90 minutes late at 5:16 am. Furthermore, two other Air India Express flights—IX2048 from Bengaluru and IX1026 from Mumbai—arrived one to three hours behind their scheduled times.
In total, over the two incidents on January 2 and January 4, the beleaguered Boeing 737 spent approximately 171 minutes hovering over Lucknow. This event underscores the severe operational challenges that North India's winter fog poses to aviation, testing the patience of passengers and the precision of flight operations alike.
