Flight Delays At Pudong Airport

19:00h 2008-02-02

I am not on the plane. No one is on the plane.

After being reassured that flights were leaving on time, I journeyed out to Pudong airport, arriving at 4:30 pm for my 6:35 pm flight. Only to find that there were people there waiting to get on flights scheduled to leave at 8:30 am. Out of six screens of departures being displayed on the video terminals, only two flights were displayed as departing. The remainder of the flights were either delayed for an indeterminate interval — more than 8 hours was common — or they were cancelled.

Also, rather mysteriously, many people reported that they were unable to use their phones in the airport. Service seemed to be suspended.

If you are travelling through Pudong airport you can expect another couple of days of delays. At least that would be my guess.

You can try calling in advance, but don’t expect much information unless you are flying a responsible international carrier.

I just wish you better luck than I had.

Related posts:

1. Another Day Another Airport
2. SOHO China Acquires 60,000 Sqm Project in Pudong for RMB 1.89 Billion