Strong surface winds result in flights cancellation at Srinagar, fliers face issues
Telegraph | 30 March 2025
Hundreds of passengers, including many from Calcutta, were stuck in Srinagar after several flights were cancelled because of strong surface winds that prevented aircraft operations for more than seven hours on Friday.
Nine flights operating out of Sheikh-ul-Alam International Airport, Srinagar, were cancelled and two were diverted. As a result, the flights which were to take off were also cancelled as the aircraft did not arrive.
“The strong surface wind, which is not very common, caused the disruption,” Javed Anjam, director of Srinagar airport, told Metro on Friday.
He said the flight services were stalled from around 10am and the first flight to land after this was at 5.20pm.
The wind speed was 17 nautical miles per hour or around 34kmph, gusting at 27 nautical miles per hour or more than 50kmph. “This is unsafe for flight operations,” said Anjam.
The airport handles 37 flights taking off and an equal number arriving.
Those flights cancelled included two from Calcutta. IndiGo operates one direct flight between Calcutta and Srinagar, while the other has a stopover at Chandigarh.
“While the direct flight was cancelled, the other one could fly till Chandigarh,” said an official of Calcutta airport. As a result, the return flights were also cancelled.
Nirendra Mohan Biswas, a professor attached to the Medical College and Hospital, Kolkata, and his wife Debi had reached Srinagar on a leisure trip on March 21 and were supposed to return on Friday.
“Now, we have been rebooked on a Sunday flight,” said Biswas.
Gauranga Banerjee of Narkeldanga is also stuck in Srinagar with wife and kids.
“We reached the airport at 2.30pm and the flight was at 6.55 pm,” said Banerjee.
“Around 3.30pm, we were told the flight was cancelled,” he said. The family has been rebooked on a flight via Delhi on Sunday.
One tour operator said its several clients are stuck in Srinagar. “We had a group of 25 tourists in Srinagar who were supposed to return on Friday. While 15 took a morning flight, 10 got stuck,” said Riddhi Roy, director of Dolphin Global.