17 flights cancelled, 18 delayed in fog-bound Delhi

Calcutta News.Net
Sunday 4th January, 2009 (IANS)

Fog continued to play havoc with the air traffic in the capital Sunday, with 18 flights delayed, 17 cancelled and 10 diverted at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport, officials said.

Nearly 275 flights operated in low visibility conditions, they said.

However, the morning was relatively brighter after days of dark, damp mornings and heavy fog.

The general visibility was recorded at 100 metres in the early hours of Sunday. By 9 a.m. it had cleared further and visibility was around 300 metres.

Despite the fog lifting, biting cold persisted due to the freezing winds blowing from the east, also termed 'easterlies'.

The airport officials said the cancelled flights were of private airlines.

The Sunday traffic on the arterial Ring Road and Outer Ring Road was moving comfortably, a Delhi traffic police official said.

However, officials reported that as many as 20 trains were running behind schedule. This was attributed to the fog blanket across northern India.

According to a Met official, the cold easterlies will continue to make the national capital shiver. 'These winds are of a speed of 10 km an hour. They will continue to blow in the coming days,' the official said.

The minimum temperature Sunday was 8.1 degrees Celsius, a degree above normal. The maximum temperature recorded Saturday was 15 degrees Celsius. Relative humidity was at a high of between 97-71 percent, the official said.

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