123 Kolkata: In recent months, flight operations between India and Bangladesh were affected due to strained relations between the two countries, with visa issues impacting travel. However, on Sunday morning, Kolkata hosted four additional flights bound for Bangladesh as poor weather over its capital led to their diversion to Kolkata.
Heavy fog that engulfed parts of Bangladesh in the early hours of Sunday made flight operations difficult in Dhaka, leading to the diversions. A Jazeera flight from Kuwait International Airport to Dhaka landed in Kolkata at 5.33 am after hovering over the Bangladesh capital for nearly an hour.
An Air Arabia flight from Sharjah to Dhaka was diverted to Kolkata and landed at 6.41 am. Additionally, a US Bangla Airlines flight from Sharjah International Airport to Dhaka was diverted to Kolkata and landed at 7.22 am.
A US Bangla Airlines flight from Chittagong was also diverted to Kolkata as there was no parking space at the airport. The parking slots were already occupied by flights diverted from Dhaka.
"Altogether, 13 flights were diverted from Dhaka to Kolkata, Hyderabad, Sylhet and Chittagong due to poor visibility at Dhaka. The flights started returning to Dhaka at 10.45 am after the weather improved," an official said.