Heavy fog caused delays at Canberra Airport on Thursday morning with visibility falling to just 100 metres overnight, leading many to vent their frustrations on social media.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Weatherzone meteorologist Kim Westcott said the fog in Canberra was particularly thick in the early hours of Thursday morning, which caused dramas for motorists and airlines alike.
“The fog was at its thickest in the early hours on the morning around 12.30am with visibility falling to just 100 metres – that’s really not much,” she said.
Ms Westcott said the fog became patchier at 6.30am with about 650 metres of visibility and about 750 metres by 8am.
“Obviously the fog gradually cleared throughout the morning and we had around 800 metres of visibility by 9.30am and 1000 metres by 9.30am.''
A number of Qantas and Virgin Australia flights were delayed, leading many passengers to vent their frustration and upload pictures on social media.
One passenger flying to Sydney, Andrew Maiden, said he faced a two-hour delay after being forced to wait for a delayed arrival to depart.
“Surely with modern technology regulators can allow aircraft to land in fog,” he said. “As usual the airlines did their best.”
But Qantas was quick to spot Mr Maiden’s tweet and apologise for any inconvenience caused, as well as offering to assist him with his bags.
Mr Maiden said he was prepared for delays at the airport as a friend had told him it had taken seven hours to travel from their door in Sydney to Canberra.
Another passenger was The Guardian Australia's editor-in-chief, Emily Wilson, who described the arrival of a Virgin Australia plane on the tarmac as “an exciting development”.
Fog delays are a common occurrence at the airport with the website explaining delays are most common with flights arriving before 9am during winter.
A report commissioned by the Bureau of Meteorology says the problem posed by fog is the closure of airports and subsequent disruptions through diversions or delays.
“Widespread fog may obscure ground features so that visual en route navigation is impaired, but the major problem is its effect on landing and take-off,” the report said.
Canberra Airport’s website states that in almost all cases, aircraft parked overnight are able to depart for their destinations on schedule subject to the decisions of airline management.
The fog is said to affect aircraft arriving at Canberra Airport before 9am, which can in turn mean delays for passengers departing Canberra on the same planes.
A Canberra Airport spokeswoman said it was a common misconception that fog in Canberra automatically resulted in the closure of the airport.
“In fact on the vast majority of days where there is fog in Canberra, flights are not affected,” she said.
The spokeswoman encouraged passengers to always travel to the airport on foggy mornings as weather conditions can change quickly and flights often operate.