Early Tuesday morning, air travel in northern India was thrown into disarray as dense fog and poor visibility forced a major international flight to make an unscheduled landing in Jaipur. The disruption left passengers stranded for hours and triggered a cascade of cancellations and delays at the city's airport.
Flight Forced to Reroute Due to Bad Weather
The primary incident involved flight XY-896, an international service traveling from Dammam in Saudi Arabia to Lucknow. The aircraft, which was scheduled to touch down in Lucknow at 5:15 AM, found its path blocked by severe weather conditions affecting much of northern India. Consequently, the pilots were compelled to divert, and the plane landed safely at Jaipur International Airport at approximately 5:25 AM.
Upon landing, the ordeal was far from over for the travelers on board. Passengers were confined to the aircraft for over three hours, waiting for the weather to improve at their original destination. One frustrated passenger, Zainab Haider, took to social media platform X to voice her distress. "Our flight was diverted from Lucknow to Jaipur due to bad weather, now we are stranded here, no food, no water and no information," she posted, appealing for help and noting that other flights seemed to be landing in Lucknow.
Widespread Disruptions at Jaipur Airport
The diverted flight was not an isolated event. The poor visibility created a ripple effect, causing significant schedule disruptions at Jaipur airport throughout the morning. In a separate incident, two flights connecting Jaipur and Delhi were cancelled at the last minute. Air India Express cancelled its Delhi-Jaipur flight (IX-2843) and its return Jaipur-Delhi service (IX-1289), citing operational reasons linked to the weather.
International travel was also impacted. A SpiceJet flight SG-57, bound for Dubai and scheduled to depart Jaipur at 9:40 AM, was delayed by more than an hour, finally taking off at 11:00 AM. This pattern of disruption follows a similar situation from the previous day, Monday, when six flights were rerouted to Jaipur due to low visibility in Delhi.
Airlines Advise Passengers to Check Status
The consecutive days of fog-related chaos have prompted major airlines to issue advisories. They are strongly urging all passengers scheduled to travel through airports in North India to proactively check their flight status before leaving for the airport. This precaution is essential to avoid unnecessary waits and confusion as weather conditions remain unpredictable.
The series of diversions and cancellations highlights the vulnerability of air travel to seasonal weather patterns in the region. While safety remains the paramount concern, the incidents have exposed gaps in passenger communication and comfort during such unforeseen delays, as echoed in the social media complaints from stranded flyers.
