Air India cancels New York, Newark flights for Monday due to severe winter storm, heavy snow forecast

Across New York City and the northeast part of the country, 30 million people are under blizzard warnings as a winter storm is set to bring heavy, wet snow.

Air India on Sunday cancelled all flights to and from New York and Newark in the United States scheduled for Monday due to a severe winter storm and a forecast of heavy snow, the airline said in a statement.

The flights have been cancelled due to a severe winter storm and a forecast of heavy snow. (PTI)

“A severe winter storm with heavy snow is forecast for New York, New Jersey and adjoining areas in the US East Coast on 22 and 23 February which is likely to have a significant impact on flight operations. In view of the safety, well-being and convenience of our passengers and crew, all Air India flights to and from New York and Newark have been cancelled on 23 February,” the statement read.

It added, “Our dedicated teams will be extending all assistance to you if you are booked to fly with us on this date”.

'Super Bomb' winter storm warning in New York

Across New York City and the northeast part of the country, 30 million people are under blizzard warnings as a powerful winter storm is set to bring heavy, wet snow driven by strong winds from Sunday. More than 1,000 flights have already been cancelled.

Travel of all kinds is expected to become nearly impossible, and the system could cause massive power cuts.

NYC mayor Zohran Mamdani warned residents that the blizzard could be more dangerous than the storm that struck the city in late January. “I am asking all New Yorkers to stay inside and stay off the roads for your safety,” he said at a press conference on Saturday. “These have the potential to be even more hazardous conditions than we faced the last time around.”

Forecasters said the storm is likely to intensify quickly on Sunday. Due to this, the US weather prediction center has described it as “a super bomb,” senior forecaster Brian Hurley told Bloomberg news agency.

Blizzard warnings issued in US

Cities and towns along the East Coast rushed to prepare for heavy snowfall and strong winds after blizzard warnings were issued for areas from Maryland to Massachusetts.

The national weather service said that once the storm strengthens on Sunday, it could turn out to be far more severe than estimates made only a few days earlier.

It added that 1 to 2 feet, about 30 to 61 centimetres, of snow could fall in many places as it issued blizzard warnings for New York City and Long Island, Boston, and coastal areas in New Jersey, Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts.

It added that flooding was also possible in parts of New York and New Jersey.

With inputs from agencies