Heavy rains disrupt air services in Mumbai

Heavy downpour and strong winds left the airport in the financial capital almost crippled with long delays, forcing airlines to divert many flights to other cities or making aircraft to do go-arounds through the day today.
The megapolis has been getting heavy rains since last evening and the Met department today warned of heavier downpour over the next 24 hours.
Till evening, the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport saw six flight cancellations, 10 go-arounds and as many diversions, they said.
While the main runway of the the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Aiport (CSIA) is operational, the nearby aerodrome at Juhu has been shut as it is very close to the Arabian Sea, officials said.

Airport officials said on an average flights were delayed by over 45 minutes.
Air Traffic Control (ATC) officials have said strong winds and accompanying heavy rains have left the runway with very low visibility.

National carrier Air India said in a statement it has waived all penalties on no-show, date change, among others due to the rains.
"In view of the inclement weather in the city, applicable penalties for reissuance, date change, no-show and cancellations among others have been waived on all tickets issued on or before August 29 to travel from and to Mumbai," Air India said in a statement.

IndiGo alone cancelled two flights today, the largest domestic carrier said. It diverted three flights--6E-453 Coimbatore-Mumbai, 6E-5924 Guwahati-Mumbai and 6E-1708 Doha- Mumbai--to Ahmedabad.
The cancelled flights are 6E-665 Delhi-Mumbai and 6E-168 Mumbai-Delhi, it said.
Jet Airways also said it had to cancel three flights. The cancelled flights are 9W 455/456 Mumbai-Hyderabad-Mumbai, 9W 316/309 Mumbai-Bhuj-Mumbai, and 9W 2121 Mumbai- Raipur- Mumbai.
However, SpiceJet claimed it has not diverted or cancelled any flight from the city.
Heavy rains today pummelled Mumbai and adjoining areas, disrupting rail, road and air services, and throwing normal life out of gear.
Besides the metropolis, adjoining Navi Mumbai and Thane were also lashed by incessant downpour since last night, delaying suburban train services and leaving vehicles crawling through waterlogged roads in low-lying areas.