The morning began with clear skies and sunshine, allowing paragliding operations to start normally. However, weather conditions deteriorated quickly, with thick clouds and dense fog enveloping the valley. For safety reasons, no flights were operated after 11 am.
Pilots and tourists waited for several hours in the hope that conditions would improve, but persistent cloud cover dashed their expectations.
Tourists who had travelled from different parts of the country were particularly disappointed. Gujarat tourist Shyam Sundar and Delhi visitors Neha and Amisha said they had travelled to Bir-Billing specifically to experience paragliding but were forced to return without getting a chance to fly.
Adding to their woes was heavy traffic on the narrow road leading to the Billing valley. Long queues of vehicles stretched along the route, with several motorists reportedly stranded for hours.
Later in the evening, local pilots and taxi drivers stepped in to help clear the congestion, providing some relief to tourists and motorists.
Bir-Billing is among the world’s renowned paragliding destinations and attracts large numbers of domestic and international visitors, particularly during the peak flying season. However, flying operations remain heavily dependent on weather conditions, with safety determining whether flights can take place.
The suspension highlighted the vulnerability of adventure tourism operations to sudden weather changes in the hill region.
