Fog clears over London

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Saturday, December 23, 2006 (London): Thick fog, which paralysed air travel in London for almost a week, has begun to clear. British Airways on Saturday said it has resumed 75 per cent of its flight operations. Thick fog caused the cancellation of flights at the Heathrow Airport for a fourth successive day on Friday, forcing thousands of frustrated passengers to scrap or delay their Christmas travel plans. Hundreds of flights have been cancelled since the fog rolled in on Tuesday, affecting an estimated 40,000 people. Clear backlog Boeing 747 Jumbo jets are being put on some European routes to try and deal with the backlog. Inspite of all the chaos some travellers bound for international destinations were optimistic that they would make it home in time for Christmas. "Today's been quite okay, I think. I don't know, this flight seems to be leaving so I'm quite confident I will be getting home for Christmas," said a passenger bound for Sweden. The only beneficiaries of the fogged out airports have been the train operators who have had an unexpected boost in Christmas business. Eurostar, the operator of trains from London to Paris and Brussels, has reported a 15 per cent increase in traffic. Denver blizzard A blizzard in Denver in the US has also made travel next to impossible for holiday goers. Hundreds of people stood in lines snaking through the International Airport here as flights were resumed after being snowed in for nearly two days. But many were doomed to more waiting, as airline officials said it could be days before the backlog of passengers clears. More than 2000 flights have been cancelled creating a ripple effect that disrupted air travel around the country as the holiday crush began to build.