NEW DELHI: The raging civil unrest in Nepal had a cascading effect on flight operations to and from India with three flights diverted to India on Tuesday when they were airborne.
A NOTAM was issued by Kathmandu’s Tribhuvan International Airport, closing the airport until Wednesday morning.
Air India operates six flights daily, all from Delhi to Kathmandu. “Two of the morning flights reached safely. The third flight, AI 217, had reached Tribhuvan airport and was hovering above for nearly 40 minutes awaiting landing permission. It was denied permission and returned to the Indira Gandhi International Airport,” said a source. The remaining three flights for the day have been cancelled.
Indigo operates two flights daily, one from Mumbai and another from Delhi. Both of them, 6E 1153 and 6E 1157, had to be diverted to Lucknow as news of escalating unrest and airport closure broke when they were airborne. “Later on, the flights went to the respective airports in Delhi and Mumbai,” a source said.
Air India Express operates a daily flight from Bengaluru to Kathmandu. “The morning flight reached safely and also returned to Kempegowda International Airport before noon during its return leg. We operate a Boeing 737 flight with a maximum seating capacity of 180 passengers, ” said a source.
“We are reviewing the situation and have announced the cancellation of our flight on Wednesday,” the source added.
SpiceJet operates a flight daily from Delhi to Kathmandu. “We had a planned cancellation today, announced long ago. We have decided to cancel the flight tomorrow (Wednesday),” said a spokesperson.
Indigo in a statement, announced, “If your travel is impacted, you may conveniently opt for an alternative flight or claim a refund by visiting our website.”
"In view of the prevailing situation and closure of the airport in Kathmandu, our flights AI215/216, AI213/214 and AI217/218 to and from Kathmandu on 10 September have been cancelled. We are closely monitoring the situation and will share further updates, the safety of our passengers and crew remain top priority," Air India announced.