Daijiworld Media Network - Dubai (SR)

Dubai, Aug 10: Due to heavy rains battering the state of Kerala, Cochin international airport has halted flights till 3 pm on Sunday. Following torrential downpours the water level has been rising dangerously in the Periyar river and a canal near the airport. In the meanwhile, Dubai based flights flying to Cochin will be diverted to Trivandrum.

As reported in Khaleej Times, a spokesperson for Emirates Airline said, "Due to weather conditions at Cochin airport all flight operations to and from Kochi (COK) will now operate via Trivandrum International Airport (TRV) on August 9."

Subsequently, the following flights have been affected:
EK532 will depart DXB at 1100hrs and arrive at TRV at 1630hrs
EK530 will depart DXB at 0845hrs and arrive at TRV at 1415hrs
EK533 will depart TRV at 1750hrs and arrive at DXB at 2010hrs
EK531 will depart TRV at 1515hrs and arrive at DXB at 1740hrs

Emirates Airlines has asked passengers to check www.emirates.com/flightstatus for the latest flight updates, as departure times may change depending on the weather conditions.

An official from Air India Express said, "All flights of Air India Express from UAE sectors are diverted to Trivandrum and Kozhikode. "We have a contingency plan. From today, flights operating as Kochi-Abu Dhabi-Kochi and Kochi-Dubai-Kochi will be diverted to Trivandrum airport. Flights on Kochi-Sharjah-Kochi will be diverted to Kozhikode. Our main concern is first accommodating passengers from yesterday's canceled Abu Dhabi-Kochi flight. We are doing this on priority basis," the official added.

An official from Dubai based airline Fly Dubai said, "Due to the closure of Cochin airport, Flydubai flights on August 9 and 10 are rerouted to Trivandrum airport. We will continue to monitor the situation and make changes to our schedule accordingly."