Hundreds Of Passengers Disrupted Across Asia As 4,501 Delayed And 210 Cancelled Flights Impact Major Airports Including Bangkok And Others

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Flight disruptions continued across Asia, with 4,501 delays and 210 cancellations across major airports in China, the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, India, and Saudi Arabia.
China Eastern, Air China, IndiGo, Cathay Pacific, Saudia, and SpiceJet were among the airlines facing the greatest disruption. Other popular carriers, including Emirates, Thai Airways, and Cebu Pacific Air also experienced delays or cancellations.
The affected cities include Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong, Manila, Bangkok, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Delhi, Jakarta, and Riyadh.

• Shanghai recorded the highest number of delays, with 773.
• Hong Kong saw 341 delays and two cancellations.
• Xiamen recorded 17 cancellations, the highest cancellation count at a Chinese airport.
• Saudia recorded 68 cancellations across Saudi airports.
• SpiceJet recorded 34 cancellations across Bengaluru, Mumbai, and Delhi.

Asian Airports Facing Major Disruptions

Shanghai Pudong International Airport

Shanghai Pudong International Airport recorded 773 delays and eight cancellations. China Eastern accounted for 232 delays, while Shanghai Airlines, Juneyao Airlines, Spring Airlines, China Southern Airlines, and Air China also faced delays.

Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport

Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport recorded 401 delays and seven cancellations. China Southern Airlines recorded 104 delays, while Shenzhen Airlines had 140 delayed flights and China Eastern recorded 28.

Hong Kong International Airport

Hong Kong International Airport recorded 341 delays and two cancellations. Cathay Pacific accounted for 131 delays, while Hong Kong Express Airways and Hong Kong Airlines recorded 39 and 36 delays respectively.

Beijing Capital International Airport

Beijing Capital International Airport recorded 316 delays and nine cancellations. Air China accounted for 192 delayed flights and eight cancellations, making it one of the most heavily affected carriers at the airport.

Indira Gandhi International Airport

Indira Gandhi International Airport recorded 236 delays and 20 cancellations. IndiGo recorded 83 delays, while SpiceJet experienced 22 delays and 17 cancellations.

Chengdu Tianfu International Airport

Chengdu Tianfu International Airport recorded 219 delays and six cancellations. Air China had 19 delayed flights and four cancellations, while China Eastern recorded 34 delays.

Jakarta-Soekarno-Hatta International Airport

Jakarta-Soekarno-Hatta International Airport recorded 208 delays and 15 cancellations. Batik Air recorded 52 delays and eight cancellations, while Pelita Air Service recorded 18 delays and three cancellations.

Airlines Impacted by Flight Disruptions

China Eastern

China Eastern recorded the highest number of delays across the key airports, with 488 delays and 14 cancellations. Its largest concentration of delays came at Shanghai, where 232 flights were delayed.

Air China

Air China recorded 298 delays and 14 cancellations. The carrier experienced its largest delay count at Beijing, where 192 flights were delayed, while four cancellations occurred at Chengdu and eight at Beijing.

China Southern Airlines

China Southern Airlines recorded 288 delays and three cancellations. Shenzhen was its largest source of delays, with 104, followed by Shanghai with 63.

IndiGo

IndiGo recorded 182 delays across Bengaluru, Mumbai, and Delhi. Its highest figure came at Delhi, with 83 delays, followed by 70 at Mumbai and 29 at Bengaluru.

Cathay Pacific

Cathay Pacific recorded 131 delays at Hong Kong International Airport. The airline also recorded one cancellation at Manila.

Saudia

Saudia recorded 97 delays and 68 cancellations across Saudi Arabia. It recorded 25 cancellations at Riyadh, 15 at Jeddah, and 14 each at Najran and Gizan.

SpiceJet

SpiceJet recorded 34 cancellations and 26 delays across Bengaluru, Mumbai, and Delhi. Delhi accounted for 17 cancellations, while Mumbai recorded 13.

XiamenAir

XiamenAir recorded 23 cancellations and also accumulated substantial delays. Its biggest disruption occurred at Xiamen, where 126 flights were delayed and 16 were cancelled.

What Can Affected Passengers Do?

• Check the airline’s latest flight status before leaving for the airport.
• Contact the airline immediately if a flight is cancelled.
• Ask about rebooking on the next available service.
• Check whether the airline offers a refund or alternative routing.
• Keep boarding passes, booking confirmations, and receipts for potential claims.
• Allow additional time for airport check-in and security if the replacement flight is confirmed.
• Monitor airport and airline notifications for gate, timing, or aircraft changes.
• Avoid relying solely on third-party flight-status information when making urgent travel decisions.

Why Are Flights Being Cancelled Across Asia?

Flight cancellations across Asia can occur because of a combination of operational challenges, aircraft availability, crew scheduling constraints, airport congestion, air traffic management issues, maintenance requirements, and changes to airline schedules.
High passenger volumes can also place additional pressure on airport and airline operations. When an earlier flight is delayed or cancelled, the disruption can carry forward to subsequent services as aircraft and crews are repositioned.

Overview of Asia Flight Cancellations

The disruptions in Asia stretch across China, India, the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, and Saudi Arabia, affecting major aviation hubs from Shanghai and Shenzhen to Hong Kong, Delhi, Mumbai, Jakarta, Jeddah, and Riyadh.

Shanghai Pudong International Airport remained the biggest delay hotspot with 773 delays, while Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport recorded 401. Hong Kong International Airport also faced 341 delays, reinforcing the scale of disruption across major East Asian gateways.

China Eastern, Air China, and China Southern Airlines recorded the highest delay totals, while IndiGo was the most heavily delayed major Indian carrier. Cathay Pacific also faced significant disruption at Hong Kong International Airport, while Saudia experienced the largest cancellation total across the affected airlines.

In Southeast Asia, Manila International Airport, Suvarnabhumi Bangkok International Airport, Sultan Hasanuddin International Airport, and Jakarta-Soekarno-Hatta International Airport all recorded delays and cancellations. Jakarta saw 15 cancellations, while Bangkok recorded 251 delays.

India also experienced widespread disruption, with Indira Gandhi International Airport recording 236 delays and 20 cancellations, while Chatrapati Shivaji International Airport recorded 167 delays and 13 cancellations. SpiceJet accounted for a substantial share of cancellations at both airports.

Across Saudi Arabia, King Khalid International Airport recorded 147 delays and 25 cancellations, while King Abdulaziz International Airport recorded 171 delays and 15 cancellations. Saudia accounted for all cancellations at Najran and Gizan and the majority at the two major Saudi gateways.

With 4,501 delays and 210 cancellations across the affected airports, travelers across China, India, the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, and Saudi Arabia continue to face a substantial level of disruption. Airline schedules and airport conditions can change throughout the day, making passengers’ latest flight-status checks particularly important.

Flight cancellations were also reported yesterday. Read our previous report here.

The data has been extensively curated by our editorial team using real-time aviation figures recorded on 20 August 2026 at 4:38 pm ET USA (August 21 2:08 am IST)

Primary Source: FlightAware.

Verification Protocol: All statistics have been independently reviewed and cross-checked by our human editorial desk. Timestamped records, data logs and feed snapshots are securely archived internally to support historical accuracy and editorial transparency.

Note: Real-time flight-tracking figures reflect active airspace and operational data. Minor variations may occur when compared with information displayed at individual airport terminals or airline departure gates.

Travellers are advised to check directly with their respective airlines and airports for the latest flight status, schedule changes and operational updates.