36 flights cancelled at Mumbai airport amid heavy rains

MUMBAI: As many 36 flights were cancelled at the Mumbai airport on Sunday as intermittent heavy spells of rains hit the city, which also forced the facility operator to suspend runway operations twice within almost one hour, albeit for a brief period, sources said.

The flights cancelled at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport were of budget airline IndiGo as well as full-service carriers Air India and Vistara, as per the source.

“Heavy rains, which continued to hit the city at a frequent interval and low visibility led to the cancellation of 18 arrivals and departures each on Sunday,” said the source.

These cancellations involve 24 flights of IndiGo, including 12 departures, and eight by Air India, including 4 departures.

Vistara also cancelled four of its flights at Mumbai Airport, the source said.

Earlier a source said that runway operations were first suspended for eight minutes at 12.12 pm and later again from 1 pm to 1.15 pm during the day due to inclement weather and low visibility.

At least 15 flights, including that of Air India, IndiGo and Akasa were diverted to the nearby airports, mainly Ahmedabad, till 4 pm, the source added.

According to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, the city received 82 mm of rain, the eastern suburbs 96 mm, and the western suburbs got 90 mm till 4 pm.

Besides flight operations, road and rail services were also hit across Mumbai due to heavy rains. While many roads were flooded, tracks on the Harbour line of the Central Railway got inundated in some places.