Several flights from Chhattisgarh's Raipur Airport were cancelled on Thursday morning due to a malfunctioning navigation system, reportedly caused by a lightning strike.
A ground-based radio navigation system, DVOR (Doppler VHF Omnidirectional Range), helps aircraft determine their position and direction relative to a destination.
An official said that the flights were diverted to various nearby airports on Wednesday evening due to damage to the DVOR system at the Swami Vivekananda Airport. However, on Thursday morning, many flights were cancelled due to the malfunction.
In a statement, Airport Director KK Lahre said, “Due to the malfunctioning of the airport's navigation system, many flights from Swami Vivekananda Airport in Raipur have been cancelled since morning.”
“Operational work is being done right now, and repair works are underway,” Lahre added.
Here's what a passenger said:
Upset by the delay, an angry passenger, Shantanu Chakraborthy, said that he was in a huge rush to reach his destination, but the delay would cost him hours.
“My flight was scheduled to take off at 7:55 AM... I was informed around 12 midnight that the flight had been cancelled. When we came to the airport, there was a huge rush. I was supposed to reach Kolkata at 9:25 AM, but now, I will reach by 1 AM,” he told ANI.
In other news:
A Singapore-bound Air India flight from Delhi, which was scheduled for September 10, was delayed due to a cabin cooling issue prior to departure, the airline confirmed.
According to an Air India spokesperson, passengers were regularly updated about the delay, and ground staff at Delhi airport provided assistance, including refreshments and meals.
Meanwhile, in response to ongoing protests and unrest in Nepal, Air India on Wednesday announced that it is operating special flights from Delhi to Kathmandu and back on Wednesday and Thursday to assist stranded passengers.
In a post on X, Air India expressed gratitude to the government and other agencies for their swift coordination in facilitating the special flights in the interest of passengers.
