Dust Storm Throws Delhi Airport Into Turmoil, Flights Delayed and Diverted

If you were flying into or out of Delhi on Sunday, you probably noticed things were anything but normal. A fierce dust storm hit the city late afternoon, sending visibility plummeting and winds howling at nearly 100 kmph. The chaos at Indira Gandhi International Airport was immediate: at least four incoming flights were diverted, and many others faced long delays.

 

Here’s what happened: Just after 5 pm, the sky turned brown and winds picked up speed. Flights from Jaipur, Chandigarh, and Amritsar couldn’t land safely and had to be rerouted. Passengers waiting to board found themselves stuck in terminals, glued to their phones for updates as airlines scrambled to adjust schedules. If you were driving to the airport, traffic jams made things even worse.

 

The airport and airlines like IndiGo and SpiceJet kept pushing out alerts, telling people to check their flight status and consider taking the metro instead of getting stuck in road traffic. Social media filled up with videos of swirling dust and people running for cover, while the temperature dropped and the city got a rare break from the summer heat.

 

The weather office had warned about possible storms, but the intensity still caught many off guard. Airport staff worked overtime to help stranded travelers and get things moving again. With summer storms becoming more common, it’s a good idea to keep an eye on weather updates if you’re flying out of Delhi anytime soon.

 

Sources: Hindustan Times, PTC News, Moneycontrol