Fliers from Mumbai to Delhi on Monday breathed a sigh of relief as flights were on schedule after visibility conditions improved at the national capital after 10.30 am. Delhis IGI airport implemented low visibility procedures owing to heavy fog between 8.30 pm on Sunday and 10.30 am on Monday. This had a spill-over effect on Mumbai during these hours since some flights were diverted to other destinations,delayed or cancelled. The situation was even worse on Sunday in Delhi as the IGI airport was shut for two hours. Jetlite cancelled an early morning Mumbai-Delhi (S2 106) flight. SpiceJet cancelled three flights SG 114,SG 109 and SG 133 on the Mumbai-Delhi sector,said a Delhi airport spokesperson. As many as five Jet Airways flights were rescheduled to a slot after 10 am in Mumbai and Delhi airports after visibility conditions improved. Last night,Air Indias Mumbai-Delhi late night flightAI 310 was diverted to Lucknow minutes after Sunday midnight. Similarly,a Go Air flight from Mumbai was diverted to Jaipur at 12.45 am on Monday. This week is not a busy season for business travellers and leisure travellers are not preferring early morning or late night flights. Afternoon flights are in demand, said Rajesh Rateria,president of the Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI),western region. Minister of state for Civil Aviation Praful Patel on Monday said flights would have to be cancelled if visibility conditions went below 50 metres. Nowhere in the world do operations happen,if the visibility is below 50 metres. Do not underestimate the capacity of Indian airports in handling these situations. We saw how snow in Europe disrupted flight schedules. Compared to that we have been able to manage situation better, Patel said at a press conference here. The civil aviation ministry has mandated that flights arriving in Delhi in early mornings have to be CAT III B compliant.
