123 Kolkata: Dense fog in north India, NE India and Bangladesh caused multiple flights scheduled to land at Guwahati and Dhaka to be diverted to Kolkata airport on Friday morning. Many flights departing Kolkata for Assam and Bangladesh also experienced delayed departures due to poor visibility in these sectors.
A senior official of Kolkata airport said that by 10.30 am on Friday, 13 flights — eight from Guwahati and five from Dhaka — were diverted to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport. ". All the flights later flew to their actual destination after the visibility improved," he said.
Due to the diversions and delayed starts, flyers were left frustrated, and many took to social media to share their angst. At 9.30 am, flyer Raghav Khakholia shared a video on X that showed passengers booked on a 7.30 am flight to Guwahati gathering around IndiGo ground staff at Kolkata airport, seeking an explanation for the delays. The flight departed over four hours late after the visibility at Guwahati improved.
On Thursday, several evening flights to Guwahati were cancelled due to fog. Air India Express flyers said they boarded the plane, and it even rolled back before they were asked to deboard an hour later. The flight was cancelled. Three IndiGo flights and a SpiceJet flight were also cancelled. Two other AI Express flights to Guwahati were diverted to Kolkata.