NEW DELHI: An Air India flight carrying 161 flyers from Delhi to Raipur in Chhattisgarh was diverted to Bhubaneswar on Wednesday due to poor visibility at Swami Vivekananda Airport in Raipur.
Flight AI 2793 departed at 5.37 am from Terminal 3 of the Indira Gandhi International Airport.
The flight was about to make its descent at the Raipur airport when the Air Traffic Control asked it not to do so due to poor visibility and to head to Bhubaneswar. It reached Bhubaneswar airport at 8.15 am. It departed at 9.21 am from there after information was received that the weather had improved at Raipur airport, said a source.
In a statement, Air India said, “Flight AI 2793 from Delhi to Raipur on 27 August was diverted to Bhubaneswar due to poor weather conditions in Raipur. The aircraft subsequently operated to its destination, Raipur, once the weather improved.”
The statement added, “At Air India, the safety of all passengers and crew remains our top priority.”
No flights for third day at Leh airport
Meanwhile, flyers, including a large chunk of those from different parts of the country who had gone to Leh as tourists continued to stay put at hotels in Leh as flights were not operated from the airport for the third consecutive day on Wednesday.
A NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) was again issued on Wednesday in connection with closure of the runway at the Kushok Bakula Rinpoche Airport as it was not in a condition to operate flights, said an airline source.
Air India had put out a travel advisory in the morning that all its flights were cancelled for the day to and from Leh airport due to adverse weather conditions.
A source said that the weather conditions appear to be improving and there was a possibility of operations resuming from Thursday but they need to wait until the morning to finalise it.