Jaffna-bound flight carrying 44 passengers cancelled due to bad weather

An aircraft carrying 44 passengers bound for Jaffna on Saturday was diverted to Tiruchirappalli due to bad weather in the northern city of the island nation, sources said.

However, as the weather did not clear and nearly after a delay of more than 3 hours, the airline cancelled its service, sources said.

The flight, operated by a private airline, departed at 10.20 am and shortly after take-off, the pilot was informed about the adverse weather conditions in Jaffna, they said.

Later, the plane was diverted to Tiruchirappalli.

“Right now the plane has landed safely in Tiruchirappalli with all the passengers. The flight will resume its journey once the weather is clear in Jaffna,” they added.

Due to persistent bad weather in Jaffna, the flight was delayed for over three hours before airline officials decided to cancel the journey.

Later, the aircraft returned to Chennai, sources told PTI on Saturday.

Upon landing, officials of the private airline informed passengers that the flight had been rescheduled for Sunday.

Meanwhile, another flight operated by the same airline—scheduled to depart from Tiruchirappalli to Jaffna—was also cancelled due to adverse weather conditions, authorities said.

Passengers from the second flight would be accommodated on the primary service rescheduled for Sunday, they added.