Thick Smog Blankets Delhi-NCR, Air Quality Hits Severe, Flight Ops Hit [Video]

New Delhi:

A dense layer of smog enveloped Delhi and surrounding regions of Noida, Ghaziabad, Gurugram and Faridabad on Wednesday morning, leading to flight diversions.

Due to adverse weather conditions, 10 flights were diverted, including six to Jaipur and one to Lucknow, since 7 am. Zero-metre visibility was recorded at the Indira Gandhi International Airport at 8.30 am with the Runway Visual Range varying between 125 and 500 metres at different locations, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.

Delhi International Airport Limited said in a post on social media platform X. “While landing and takeoffs continue at Delhi Airport, flights that are not CAT III compliant may get affected,” the authority said. CAT III is a navigation system that enables aircraft to land even when visibility is low.

Delhi’s air quality index was in the ‘Severe’ category breaching the 400 mark, while that of Gurugram, Noida and Ghaziabad was in the ‘Poor’ …