6 flights cancelled at Srinagar airport, 4 at Jammu

Srinagar, Dec 31: Six flights at Srinagar International Airport were cancelled on Wednesday due to operational issues and low visibility caused by extreme weather conditions at Delhi, said an Airport Authority of India (AAI) spokesperson.

Of the six cancelled flights, one service was scheduled to be operated by IndiGo, while three cancelled flights of Air India, one each of Air India Express and SpiceJet, got cancelled.

These flights were slotted to fly into Srinagar from Amritsar, Delhi, and Jammu.

The cancellations took place amid dense fog affecting Jammu and several parts of North India.

In a post on microblogging site ‘X’, the airport authorities advised passengers to reconfirm their flight status with the concerned airlines before travelling to the airport, adding that further updates would be shared as received.

They expressed regret over the inconvenience caused.

The AAI issued an advisory, asking passengers to track flight status and arrive at airports earlier than usual, citing low visibility due to dense fog at several airports across North India that may result in delays.

Meanwhile, four flights were cancelled at the Jammu Airport on Wednesday, which includes one flight each of Air India Express and Air India.

Two flights of the low-cost carrier IndiGo were also cancelled at the Jammu Airport, said airport officials.

The cancelled flights were scheduled to operate on the Delhi-Jammu-Srinagar route, the Srinagar-Jammu sector, and the Delhi-Jammu sector. Overall, the Jammu airport witnessed 16 flight arrivals and departures on Wednesday.

Notably, over 125 flights were cancelled at Srinagar and Jammu airports between December 3 and 25, owing to pilot roster issues suffered by IndiGo.

Notably, at the 14th General Meeting and Tourism Promotion Event of the Tourist Trade Interest Guild in Srinagar in November, Director, Srinagar International Airport, Javed Anjum, told reporters that the runway at the airport had been upgraded to the Instrument Landing System Category-2 (ILS-2), which essentially means that even in low visibility, a flight can make a landing.

Anjum had said that the upgradation of the runway was completed in 2024, the results of which were seen even during last winter, “when flights could land in visibility as low as 400 metres.”

In November, a dry run and preparedness exercise was conducted by the AAI, Srinagar International Airport, to assess and ensure operational readiness in view of the forthcoming winter and snow season, with special emphasis on fog and low-visibility contingencies.