Delhi: Over 500 flights delayed after rain, hail — will disruptions continue today?

DELHI'S Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGI) witnessed major flight disruptions on Tuesday after heavy rain and hail battered the national capital. Adverse weather conditions significantly impacted operations, making it difficult for airlines to maintain schedules.

According to Hindustan Times, citing flight data, over 500 flights were delayed, while several others were diverted amid the India Meteorological Department’s (IMD) orange alert. At least 10 flights were cancelled and five were diverted to nearby airports as the situation unfolded.

The disruption was further aggravated by escalating tensions in the Middle East, including reported drone-related incidents, which led to a rise in cancellations and added pressure on already strained operations.

Flight cancellations were largely concentrated on routes to and from the Middle East, following the recent drone-linked incident.

Meanwhile, a hailstorm that swept across areas surrounding the airport, including Dwarka, Palam and Najafgarh, further disrupted operations. Several flights were diverted to nearby airports, while others experienced delays as conditions worsened.

Data from the flight-tracking website Flightradar24 showed that more than 500 flights, including arrivals and departures, were delayed, with average delays of up to 30 minutes.

“Five flights were diverted between 2 PM and 3.30 PM as gusty winds, rain and hail were recorded around the airport. Some flights were delayed, too,” HT quoted an airport official as saying.

As per the official, Delhi airport saw 10 flight cancellations of those that were scheduled to and from airports in West Asia since 11:00 PM on 4 May. “This included six flights from Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Kuwait and Baghdad to Delhi and four flights from Delhi to these locations,” the official added.

Delhi airport also shared an advisory on X, urging passengers to check flight schedules. “Flight operations may be impacted due to a hailstorm near Delhi airport, which could result in delays or short-term disruptions,” the advisory said.

Weather today: Can Delhi expect more flight disruptions today?

IMD lifted the rainfall alert and has issued no colour-coded warning for Wednesday. The Meteorological Department forecasted partly cloudy weather during the day.

The weather office forecasted the possibility of thundery weather conditions towards late evening in view of the prevailing western disturbance. According to the Meteorological Department, the western disturbance is likely to withdraw by Thursday, and the mercury is expected to spike again. Residents of the national capital can expect a gradual rise in maximum temperatures of 4-5°C over the next 4 days, the IMD said.

“The maximum and minimum temperatures over Delhi are likely to be in the range of 34°C to 36°C and 20°C to 22°C, respectively. The minimum temperature will be appreciably below normal (-3.1°C to -5.0°C) at many places, and maximum temperatures will be appreciably below normal (-3.1°C to -5.0°C) at most places over Delhi on Tuesday,” IMD in its latest weather bulletin said.

Safdarjung, the primary weather monitoring station, reported a maximum temperature of 33.6 °C, which is 5.7 degrees Celsius below the normal range. According to IMD data, Safdarjung station recorded 4.6 mm of rainfall till 8:30 AM and ‘trace’ rainfall in the next nine hours.

Weather forecast for the next 5 days

Over the next five days, the mercury is expected to reach 40°C. A fresh Western Disturbance is likely to affect northwest India from 10 May, bringing isolated to scattered thunderstorms, lightning, and gusty winds on 10 and 11 May.

Skymet vice president Mahesh Palawat said, “A fresh western disturbance has been influencing the region in the past few days, leading to a cyclonic circulation over adjoining areas…there is less possibility of heatwave at least for the next one week.”

The Air Quality Index (AQI) on Tuesday settled at 86 in the 'satisfactory' category, making it the cleanest May day in three years, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). CAQM in a post on X said, “Delhi records its lowest daily average AQI of the current year today, with the average AQI clocking 86 at 4.00 PM.”