Delhi airport flight delays caused massive disruption as more than 200 flights were delayed due to a technical glitch in India’s air traffic control system. The issue affected both domestic and international operations, creating widespread travel chaos.
Over 200 Flights Delayed at Delhi Airport
According to India’s Airports Authority (AAI), a technical issue in the Automatic Message Switching System disrupted the normal process of generating flight plans.
Controllers were forced to create flight plans manually, leading to long delays at Delhi airport. Many departures were postponed by over 30 minutes, with some delays stretching beyond an hour.
Airlines Hit by the Technical Problem
Several major airlines faced operational challenges due to the Delhi airport flight delays. IndiGo confirmed its flight operations were affected, with its shares falling 1.5% after the news broke.
SpiceJet and Air India also warned passengers to expect further disruptions. International carriers like ITA Airways and Virgin Atlantic experienced significant delays, with flights to Rome and London postponed by nearly two hours.
Technical Teams Rush to Fix the Glitch
The problem began on Thursday evening, according to official sources. AAI stated that “technical teams are working to restore the system at the earliest.”
Authorities have not yet confirmed the cause of the malfunction. However, broadcaster CNN News18 reported that investigators are exploring whether computer malware could be behind the outage.
Ripple Effect Across Other Airports
Experts warned the Delhi airport flight delays could have a cascading effect on other airports in India. With Delhi handling 60 to 70 aircraft movements per hour, even a short disruption can cause national-level congestion.
Data from Flightradar24 showed the average departure delay reached 55 minutes. Passengers traveling between 6 a.m. and 8 a.m. faced the longest waits.
Delhi Airport’s Global Standing
Delhi airport served around 78 million passengers in 2024, ranking as the ninth busiest airport in the world, according to Airports Council International.
The airport is operated by GMR Airports, while air traffic control is managed by the AAI. Despite the glitch, incoming flights continued to land, though departures remained heavily disrupted.
Investigation and Recovery Efforts
Authorities are still determining the exact cause of the Delhi airport flight delays. The incident follows a similar ransomware attack that disrupted European airports in September, raising concerns over aviation cybersecurity.
As of now, AAI has not provided a timeline for complete restoration, but officials assured that normal operations will resume soon.