Fog cover delays flights by hours
Many international and domestic flights were delayed by several hours on Saturday due to fog for the first time this winter at the IGI airport here, an official said. “Due to foggy conditions around the runway, many international and domestic flights were delayed by two to three hours in the early morning,” a Delhi Intern-ational Airport Limited (DIAL) official said.
In all, 11-12 flights which were either supposed to depart or land were affected. These included flights from Frankfurt, London and other international destinations. Fog, which descended in the wee hours, caused the general visibility to drop below the required level of 50 metres, forcing the airport authorities to implement the low visibility procedures (LVP).
“Fog first appeared at 1.30 am When visibility was at 700 metres, remaining like that till 4.30 am. At around 7.30 am, the visibility fell to below the 50 metres mark,” an India Meteorological Department (IMD) official said.
The official said the technologically superior CAT (category) IIIB ILS (instrument landing system), which allows compliant aircraft and trained pilots to land even when the runway visibility is at 50 metres, could not cope with the foggy condition below that level. —IANS
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Mercury at 8º Celsius
AGE CORRESPONDENT
New Delhi
Dec. 25: Dense fog descended upon the capital which witnessed a cold and hazy Christmas morning on Saturday. The minimum temperature rose to 8.2º. The maximum temperature was recorded at 24º Celsius, a degree above normal. According to Met officials, the minimum temperature is expected around 8º Celsius and maximum around 22 degrees in next 24 hours.
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