Incessant rains in the city on Saturday did now allow three flights to land at the Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport on time causing great inconvenience to the passengers aboard these flights.
Heavy rains battered Nagpur in the afternoon around 3.30 pm and at night between 8 pm and 10 pm on Saturday.
As a result IndiGo Airlines’ Kolkata-Nagpur flight 6E-404 could not land here at its scheduled time. It was allowed to land at Nagpur after a delay of nearly 45 minutes. Similarly, IndiGo Airlines’ Indore-Nagpur flight 6E-436 was delayed by 30 minutes while Air India flight AI629 too was delayed by 30 minutes.
According to sources, the IndiGo Airlines flight 6E-404 was delayed at its source station Kolkata itself due to lightening strike. Similarly, flight 6E-436 also got delayed due to rains.
The flight usually reaches Nagpur at 8 pm. But on Saturday, the flight landed at 8.30 pm.
It is not clear yet why the Air India flight was delayed, but it is being said that it was also have delayed because of the rains only.
The meteorological department has predicted heavy rainfall in the city and nearby areas throughout this week.
This will have a serious impact over the schedule of flights. Airport officials said that flights may get delayed or even diverted to other airports if the visibility goes below the safe limit during rainy season.
Meanwhile, the renovated entry gate at the old terminal premises of the Nagpur Airport would soon become operational. The new set up includes a well-furnished cabin and large sheds, which provide a sturdy look to it. It is also equipped with metal detectors and other facilities to check vehicles. The installation of this new set up passengers would provide a big relief to the passengers boarding flight from Nagpur.