Cyclone Michaung: IndiGo said the affected passengers will be offered a waiver on cancellation and rescheduling of flights. Air India also waived rescheduling charges for yesterday and today’s flights.
Cyclone Michaung: As the runways at Chennai airport were flooded due to heavy rains, over a thousand of flights connecting the city were cancelled since Monday after heavy rain inundated the airport to Cyclone Michaung. IndiGo in a statement said it had to cancel 550 flights across India after the airport closed operations, while Air India and Vistara suspended at least 16 and 10 flights from Chennai respectively.
Even as the rain has stopped, now Chennai struggles to drain the floodwaters and assess the damages caused due to the heavy rain.
Due to the flooding at the runways, the Chennai airport had shut its runway and grounded all planes on Monday after floodwater entered the airport. However, the operations resumed on Tuesday. Right now, the Visakhapatnam airport is shut as the cyclone has moved towards Andhra Pradesh.
IndiGo further states that it resumed its flight operations from Chennai around noon, but said it cancelled 60 flights today. Vistara also has resumed operations to and from Chennai.
IndiGo said the affected passengers will be offered a waiver on cancellation and rescheduling of flights. Air India also waived rescheduling charges for yesterday and today’s flights.
The development comes as Cyclone Michaung unleashed heavy rainfall in Chennai since Sunday night, submerging the city. Apart from flights, dozens of trains were also cancelled and the passengers were promised a full refund.
As per a statement released by the airport authorities, the rains have stopped, and the water has receded. However, there is a lot of slush and filth on the runways and taxiways, which is being cleared by four Civilian Firearms Teams (CFTs) and additional manpower.
The Chennai Team has confirmed that all CNS and ATM facilities are functioning normally, and the NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) will be withdrawn shortly. Airlines and other stakeholders have been informed about the resumption of operations and have been asked to plan their flights accordingly.
Air Traffic Management (ATM) will prioritize departures to clear the backlog of stranded passengers at the airport. There are currently 21 aircraft on the ground and around 1500 passengers in the terminals. The F&B Concessionaire has ensured that adequate food is available at all outlets.
Meanwhile, 8 people have lost their lives while multiple roads and subways are closed due to waterlogging in the wake of the Severe Cyclonic Storm ‘Michaung’, which is expected to make landfall on the southern coast of Andhra Pradesh between Nellore and Machilipatnam today.