Václav Havel Airport in Prague was forced to suspend arrivals and departures on Wednesday morning due to dense fog and significantly reduced visibility. The disruption lasted several hours, with operations resuming shortly before 10:15 a.m. when a flight from Zurich successfully landed. In total, 24 inbound flights were affected by the shutdown — six were fully cancelled and others delayed.
The heavy fog, which had formed over Prague and Central Bohemia during the night, gradually began to lift throughout the morning. Some flights were diverted to other airports, such as Brno.
The situation was further complicated by ongoing maintenance work on the airport’s main runway 06/24, leaving aircraft to rely on the auxiliary runway 12/30. However, this secondary runway cannot be used under low-visibility conditions. According to the Czech Air Navigation Services, no take-offs or landings are permitted on runway 12/30 when runway visual range (RVR) drops below 550 meters at any measuring point.
At 9:30 a.m., visibility on the auxiliary runway was only 275 meters. While it improved to 2000 meters by 10:00 a.m., some diversions were still in progress.
Operations on the secondary runway have resumed. Morning reduced visibility affected a total of 24 arrivals by 10:00 AM, 6 flights were canceled, and all morning flights are delayed. We kindly ask passengers to wait for information from their airline. pic.twitter.com/0hCUHIjmPA
— Prague Airport (@PragueAirport) April 16, 2025
This event highlights the limitations of the current airport infrastructure, as the secondary runway intersects the main one and channels traffic over residential areas. The airport has long advocated for the construction of a parallel runway to improve operational reliability in adverse conditions.
The fog developed late Tuesday evening, following clear skies and a drop in temperature that brought the air close to its dew point. Afternoon and evening showers and thunderstorms in western and northwestern Bohemia added extra moisture to the air, further contributing to the dense fog.
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