Haze delays flights to Singapore

Haze delays flights to Singapore

SINGAPORE (Reuter): Several flights from Kuala Lumpur and Penang to Singapore were delayed yesterday by up to two hours because of a thick haze from Indonesian forest fires, an Malaysian Airlines Systems (MAS) official said.

"The haze has delayed a number of flights all through the day, the situation is very bad today," the official said.

A spokesman from Singapore Airlines, the other major airline operating between the two countries, said the haze had delayed one flight to Kuala Lumpur and three coming here from there.

The haze, created by forest, coal and peat fires in Indonesia's Kalimantan and Sumatra islands, has blanketed parts of Malaysia and Singapore for over a month.

It has forced air traffic diversions and raised pollution and other concerns in all three countries.