Poor visibility: Flight diverted to Bengaluru from Chennai

An IndiGo flight bound for Chennai International Airport was diverted to Bengaluru late on Sunday night after visibility at Meenambakkam fell below the required minimum for a safe landing. The aircraft involved was an Airbus A321neo, operating as flight 6E2002 from Raipur’s Swami Vivekananda Airport with 78 passengers on board, according to The Times of India and The New Indian Express, with DT Next and Indian Aviation News Net also detailing the event. The diversion was prompted by the failure of Chennai’s Runway 07 to meet the mandated runway visual range, which airport authorities indicated stood at about 900 metres, below the 950-metre threshold.

The Times of India specifies that the diversion occurred at approximately 11:15 pm after the flight crew determined that the runway visibility did not meet the minimum requirement for a safe landing. Chennai airport officials confirmed the prevailing visibility at that time was around 900 metres, which triggered the precautionary redirect to Bengaluru. The Times of India notes that the flight was originally scheduled to land around 10:45 pm before the diversion and subsequent late-night return to land in Chennai at about 1:54 am.

DT Next, corroborating across outlets, describes the broader disruption caused by thick smoke from Diwali firecrackers enveloping the Chennai airport area. They report that a total of 26 flights were affected at Chennai airport that night, including 11 arriving flights delayed and 15 departing flights delayed or late. ATC officials monitored runway visibility as a dense smoke blanket enveloped the runway area, and the Airports Authority of India prepared for potential visibility issues, allowing landings and takeoffs only when the runway was clearly visible.

Urbanacres.in notes that multiple outlets confirmed the diversion of the Chennai-bound IndiGo flight to Bengaluru due to runway visibility falling below landing limits, with no injuries or additional aircraft specifics disclosed in that source. The diversion is framed consistently across reports as a consequence of degraded visibility linked to smoke from Diwali celebrations, rather than a mechanical issue or crew error.

The New Indian Express provides a focused account of the diversion, stating that the IndiGo aircraft originated from Raipur and landed in Bengaluru after the decision to divert. It also cites air quality data indicating Chennai’s air quality index around 1,463 and Bengaluru’s around 253 at the time, underscoring the contrasting environmental conditions that accompanied the incident.

DT Next’s extended coverage emphasizes the operational context at Chennai during the smoky conditions: landings and takeoffs were allowed only when the runway was clearly visible, and the air traffic control monitored movements to manage the disruption. They reiterate that the IndiGo flight from Raipur, carrying 156 passengers per their account, could not land in Chennai and diverted to Bengaluru before the late-night return to the original destination, highlighting the passenger disruption amid the smoky environment.

The Times of India adds a precise timeline detail by asserting that the Raipur-to-Chennai leg carried 78 passengers. They report that after the diversion, the airplane later returned to Chennai to land at about 1:54 am, aligning with the broader narrative of a nocturnal disruption and a later re-entry into the Chennai airspace once visibility conditions improved, according to their reportage.

Across the compiled coverage, authorities characterized the diversion as a precautionary measure driven by degraded visibility caused by smoke from Diwali-related celebrations. ATC and airport operations are described as closely managing movement under the smoky conditions, with strict adherence to visibility thresholds before permitting landings or takeoffs, and the event is positioned within the broader context of nighttime air traffic disruption at Chennai that night. The available material does not indicate injuries, fatalities, or additional aircraft specifics beyond the flight designation, route, passenger count as reported by the different outlets, and the 1:54 am late-night Chennai landing.