Passengers at Manchester Airport have been warned to expect delays of up to 80 minutes to departures and 100 minutes to arrivals, according to online traffic reporting system Inrix
Heavy fog has enveloped Manchester Airport, leading to disruption and delays for many travellers just after Christmas.
Outbound flyers have been warned they face hold-ups of around 80 minutes while those incoming might encounter delays pushing to 100 minutes, according to Inrix.
Airport chiefs say such timings are purely ‘worst-case scenarios’, with the majority of passengers likely to experience shorter wait times. Despite the thick fog blanketing much of Britain causing air traffic restrictions at various airports, flyers are encouraged to check in according to schedule.
The airport authorities released a statement advising: “Passengers due to travel should prepare as normal and aim to arrive at the airport in line with their airline’s advice – this is usually two hours ahead of a short haul flight and three hours ahead of a long haul flight.”
Regarding today’s circumstances, a spokesperson for Manchester Airport clarified the situation, saying: “Like most airports across the country, we have experienced some delays as a result of fog. In most instances these delays have been short and have not caused disruption to our schedule.”
This comes as roughly 50 flights set to depart Manchester later today are currently affected. Some airlines including Ryanair and Jet2 have cautioned their customers about the potential delays due to this adverse weather condition, reports the Manchester Evening News.
A spokesperson for Nats, Britain’s leading air traffic management company, explained: “Due to widespread fog, temporary air traffic restrictions are in place at several airports across the UK today. Restrictions of this sort are only ever applied to maintain safety.
“We continue to monitor the situation and have a Met Office expert embedded within our operation to ensure we have the latest available information.
“Our teams are working closely with the airports and airlines to minimise disruption.”
The dense fog is expected to lift mostly overnight, though some may linger into the morning. The weather is set to turn decidedly damper come Sunday afternoon as most of the mist fades away.
