High temperature disrupts flights to high altitude Leh airport, BA

High temperature at high altitude is disrupting flight operations to and from Leh, located at nearly 10,700 feet above the mean sea level. Domestic airlines operate A320 and B737 planes to the Leh airport and some carriers have been cancelling their scheduled flights in recent days due to high temperatures, according to industry officials.Details about the number of Leh flights cancelled on Tuesday could not be ascertained.

“IndiGo flight operations to and from Leh have been impacted due to the prevailing high outside air temperature in Leh, which is beyond the airline’s control,” an airline spokesperson said in a statement. The maximum temperature at which an A320 Neo aircraft can operate is 33 degrees Celsius. If the temperature crosses that level, then the plane cannot be operated at that elevation, a senior Airbus pilot said. For Boeing 737 planes, the maximum temperature for operation at the Leh airport is 32 degrees Celsius, according to a SpiceJet official.

The pilot said the maximum temperatures are decided after taking into account various operational parameters, including the elevation of an airport and obstacles around it.The Kushok Bakula Rimpochee Airport in Leh is at an altitude of 10,682 feet above the mean sea level. Pilots are provided special training for operating flights to this airport, which is one of the highest commercial airports in the world.
In recent weeks, the temperature in the Leh area has been mostly high and above 30-degree Celsius, a situation that has resulted in the cancellation of some flights. IndiGo, Air India, SpiceJet and Vistara have services to Leh.

Aviation industry officials said that high temperatures have been causing operational issues, including those related to the payload of an aircraft. At high altitudes like in Leh, the air has less density and combined with high temperature, it becomes difficult for an aircraft to take off, the officials said.