Bengaluru: Kempegowda International Airport was forced to close operations for an hour on Tuesday due to fog.
With dense fog curbing visibility, the airport suspended operations between 4.44 a.m. and 5.27 a.m., resulting in a domino effect, which saw up to 69 flights, including 25 arrivals, being delayed.
Five flights had to be diverted to Chennai airport temporarily, said officials from Kempegowda International Airport.
Currently, the runway at KIA operates through the CAT I Instrument Landing System (ILS), which allows take off only at visibility of 400 m and landings at 550 m. While this is the third day of the season when fog has disrupted flight schedules, the impact on Tuesday morning far exceeded what was seen earlier this month.
A KIA spokesperson said delays owing to fog would be a thing of the past after the installation of CAT II system — which reduces Runway Visibility Range to just 50 m — in the second runway scheduled to open in December 2019.
