Morning flights out of Medan canceled

MEDAN, North Sumatra: Garuda Indonesia has temporarily canceled all morning flights from Medan to Jakarta because of the haze covering the Polonia Airport in Medan, Antara said.

The airlines had virtually canceled both scheduled morning flights -- at 8.40 a.m and 9.40 a.m. -- in the past three weeks because the haze reduced visibility at the airport to dangerous levels.

To further minimize financial loss, the airline decided to cancel the morning flights to Jakarta until further notice, Garuda's district manager M. Chanin told the news agency.

The haze normally clears in the afternoon and visibility improves to between 1,600 and 1,800 meters. In the evening, visibility is reduced to 1,200 meters, the minimum for landing and take off. (emb)