Delhi dust storm disrupts over 80 flights: delays, diversions, and frustrated flyers

A severe dust storm swept through Delhi and nearby areas on Friday evening, severely impacting flight operations at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA). The intense weather conditions led to widespread disruption, leaving hundreds of passengers stranded and flooding social media with complaints.

As per reports, the storm forced the delay of over 50 flights, 25 flights to be diverted, and 7 flights to be cancelled. Passengers were kept waiting for hours, leaving them frustrated.  They held both the airport authorities and airlines responsible for the poor communication and mismanagement.

Best Airport of South Asia, IGI T3 today at 7 am... utter chaos... passangers treated worse than cattles pic.twitter.com/rDkWqtegzy

— Dr Shalabh Kumar (@dr_shalabh) April 12, 2025

As operations came to a standstill, stranded passengers voiced their grievances on social media, slamming the lack of timely updates, inadequate support services, and confusion at the terminals. Videos and photos of crowded waiting areas, long queues, and weary travellers went viral, further fuelling public outcry.