Air travellers to and from Nagpur continued to face major disruptions as multiple flights were delayed yet again on Sunday, marking third such episode within five days after similar delays on Wednesday, July 1 and Friday, July 3. The recurring disruptions have left passengers frustrated, with repeated schedule changes causing uncertainty and long waiting hours at Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport. On Sunday evening, several flights operating between Nagpur (NAG) and Mumbai (BOM) witnessed delays of over two hours due to adverse weather conditions. IndiGo (6E 5175) flight, along with its codeshare services British Airways (BA 8224) and Virgin Atlantic (VS 9492), scheduled to depart at 7 pm, was pushed back to 9.35 pm, resulting in a delay of 2 hours and 35 minutes. The return services from Mumbai were equally affected.

 

Virgin Atlantic (VS 8223), IndiGo (6E 6802) and Air France (AF 6505) departed Mumbai at 7.40 pm instead of the scheduled 4.55 pm, a delay of 2 hours and 45 minutes. Their arrival in Nagpur was postponed from 6.30 pm to 9.10 pm, leaving passengers nearly 2 hours and 40 minutes behind schedule. Another Mumbai-Nagpur service comprising IndiGo (6E 5147), Virgin Atlantic (VS 8234) and British Airways (BA 8798) also departed 1 hour and 5 minutes late, taking off at 7.40 pm instead of 6.35 pm and arriving in Nagpur at 9.10 pm, an hour behind schedule. The latest disruptions come close on the heels of widespread delays on Friday, when flights between Nagpur and Ahmedabad as well as Nagpur and Delhi were delayed by over an hour due to weather-related operational issues. Earlier, on Wednesday, multiple Mumbai-Nagpur flights also arrived significantly behind schedule as heavy monsoon rains, poor visibility and runway congestion in Mumbai affected flight operations.

 

With three rounds of disruptions in less than a week, passengers are increasingly bearing the brunt of weather-related operational challenges. Although airlines have attributed the delays to adverse weather conditions, the repeated disruptions have resulted in extended waiting hours and inconvenience for hundreds of travellers using airport.