8 flights with 1,200 people diverted to Surat as gusty winds hit Mumbai airport ops
Strong winds disrupted flight operations at Mumbai Airport on Tuesday evening, forcing eight Mumbai-bound flights carrying a total of 1,255 passengers to divert to Surat Airport. All eight aircraft landed safely at Surat amid the adverse weather conditions, with the facility serving as an alternate airport as operations in Mumbai were affected.
The first diverted flight to reach Surat was IndiGo flight 6E-2017, operating from Tiruchirappalli to Mumbai. It landed at around 6:50 pm with 182 passengers on board. Four minutes later, IndiGo flight 6E-864 from Delhi arrived at Surat Airport with 122 passengers.
Air India (Vistara) flight AI-2941, operating from Delhi to Mumbai, was the third flight diverted to Surat. It landed at around 7:02 pm with 186 passengers. This was followed by IndiGo flight 6E-5104 from Chennai to Mumbai, which arrived at approximately 7:34 pm carrying 179 passengers.
Air India (Vistara) flight AI-2746 from Goa to Mumbai subsequently landed at Surat at around 7:38 pm with 135 passengers. IndiGo flight 6E-5255, which was travelling from Bengaluru to Mumbai, arrived at about 7:47 pm with 135 passengers.
Two more flights were diverted to Surat as the weather conditions continued to affect operations at Mumbai.
Air India flight AI-640, operating from Chennai to Mumbai, landed at Surat with 112 passengers. The available input records its arrival time as around 7:50 am.
IndiGo flight 6E-5312 from Bhopal to Mumbai was the final diverted flight, arriving with 204 passengers. Its reported arrival time is around 8:00 am.
Together, the eight flights carried 1,255 passengers. Despite the disruption, all the aircraft reached Surat safely. The diversions were carried out in view of the strong winds and prevailing weather conditions at Mumbai Airport.
Surat Airport Director Anand Narayan Sharma confirmed the diversion of the flights during a telephonic conversation with India Today.
Surat Airport consequently functioned as an alternate facility, accommodating the diverted aircraft and passengers during the disruption.
Once weather conditions at Mumbai Airport improve and flight operations resume, the diverted aircraft are expected to depart Surat for Mumbai.
Arrangements will also be made to help passengers reach their respective destinations and continue their onward journeys.
The disruption highlights the role of alternate airports such as Surat in maintaining air connectivity during sudden weather-related interruptions.
Further movement of the eight aircraft and passengers will depend on the restoration of normal flight operations at Mumbai Airport.- Ends
Brijesh Doshi, who lives in Ahmedabad, is a Senior Special Correspondent in the India Today Group and is currently working as the Gujarat bureau chief of AajTak-India Today TV. He reports on political matters from Gujarat. A journalist with more than 14 years of experience, Brijesh has done reported extensively from the ground during several natural disasters scuh as cyclones and floods in Gujarat in the last decade. He has also done detailed coverage on all the political developments in the state. He previously worked in Gujarat's vernacular media for more than 12 years.
