Ranchi, along with other parts of Jharkhand, has been engulfed in a thick blanket of fog over the past few days, severely disrupting daily life and air services.
Poor visibility due to dense fog had a direct impact on operations at Birsa Munda Airport on Wednesday, leading to multiple flight cancellations and significant delays.
Airport sources said that visibility on the runway dropped far below the prescribed safety limits during the morning hours, making safe landing and take-off impossible. As a result, several flights were either delayed by hours or cancelled altogether.
The Kolkata–Ranchi flight 6E 7561, scheduled to arrive at 7:10 am, landed at 9:40 am. Similarly, the Pune–Ranchi flight 6E 6484 arrived at 10:25 am instead of its scheduled time of 8:25 am. The Ranchi–Bengaluru flight 6E 6799, which was supposed to depart at 8:55 am, finally took off at 10:55 am due to foggy conditions.
The Hyderabad–Ranchi flight 6E 421 reached the airport at 10:45 am, nearly two hours behind schedule, while the Ranchi–Hyderabad flight 6E 398 departed at 11:15 am instead of 9:30 am.
In view of the severe fog situation, a total of seven flights were cancelled. These included 6E 7089/7014, 6E 7674/7235 and 6E 7561/7562 (Kolkata–Ranchi–Kolkata), 6E 6787/576 (Delhi–Ranchi–Delhi), IX 1239/1248 (Bengaluru–Ranchi–Bengaluru), IX 1046/1047 (Delhi–Ranchi–Delhi) and IX 1237/1238 (Mumbai–Ranchi–Mumbai).
The cancellations and delays caused considerable inconvenience to passengers, many of whom were seen waiting for hours at the airport. Some travellers also expressed frustration over the lack of alternative arrangements.
Airport officials said the disruptions were unavoidable as runway visibility had fallen below safety standards in the morning, forcing authorities to prioritise passenger safety over flight operations.
Also read: Complaint filed against Bihar CM Nitish Kumar in Ranchi
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