34 flights diverted as strong crosswinds prevent landing

Flight movement at the Indira Gandhi International Airport was affected for a third consecutive day on Sunday.

Flight movement at the Indira Gandhi International Airport was affected for a third consecutive day on Sunday,with 34 flight diversions within 24 hours,owing to the high-velocity winds and thunder squall over Delhi and the neighbouring regions.

R K Jenamani,director in-charge,IGI Met,said wind speed during this period went up to 60kmph. The thunder squall between from 11 pm on Saturday to 1 am on Sunday and from 2 to 4 pm on Sunday severely affected flight movement,as the winds blew in opposite directions,considered very dangerous for flight movement.

On Saturday night at the IGI Airport,southerly winds blew at 60 kmph,whereas northerly winds blew at 70 kmph,Jenamani said. Pilots cannot take chances during such sudden crosswinds.

There were 34 flight diversions and a cascading effect on flight operations delayed several others. Strong winds prevented planes from landing and,at many occasions,veered them away from the path,officials said.

Airlines sources said departures,too,had to be held up for some time as priority was given to flights waiting to land. This affected flight schedules for a large part of the day and several flights were delayed. There was massive congestion after the storm and there were several flights waiting to land. Many of them must have spent about 45 minutes to an hour circling over Delhi before they could land. Most flights were delayed by 15 minutes to an hour during the day because of high wind velocity, said an airline official.

Jenamani said the widespread wind activity,also seen across other northern states,was a result of the sharp rise in maximum temperature last week. The change in weather phenomenon has resulted in good moisture insurgence from the Bay of Bengal before the onset of monsoons. We expect calmer winds on Monday, he said.

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