A large number of passengers at Pudong International Airport T1 terminal on Sunday morning.

Operations gradually go back to normal at Shanghai's two airports on Sunday as typhoon Lekima moved northward away from the city.

There are still some flight cancellations and delays along with a large number of stranded passengers at Pudong and Hongqiao international airports, because almost all flights into and out of Shanghai were canceled on Saturday under the gales and rainstorms brought by the typhoon.

Over 170 domestic and international flights have been canceled and 150 were delayed at the two airports on Sunday morning. The airports plan to operate a total of 2,096 flights on Sunday, the Shanghai Airport Authority said.

At the Pudong airport, 83 percent of its takeoff and landing flights have been delayed as of 10am Sunday. Flight was delayed by about two hours on average as a large number of accumulated flights along with supplementary flights were waiting to take off.

A large crowds of passengers waited in front of the ticket counters to buy available ticket on site, making a sharp contrast to the situation on Saturday when almost all the counters were shut down and only a few passengers waited at the terminal buildings.

"I booked a ticket and rushed to the Pudong airport right after the rains and gales seemed relieved," said a local passenger surnamed Zhu. Her flight 9C8577 with Spring Airlines was scheduled to take off on Saturday to Saga in Japan, but was canceled along with all inbound and outbound flights with the budget carrier. She changed to another available flight to Fukuoka on Sunday.

The airport authority has opened all the security check channels at T1 and T2 at the Pudong airport to reduce the waiting time to three minutes, according to the airport.

The Hongqiao airport has canceled 62 flights and 16 were delayed around 10am. The airport authority reduced a flight delay alert to the airport on Sunday morning.

The city's two airports operated only 100 inbound and outbound flights on Saturday. A total of 1,988 flights — more than 90 percent — were canceled after typhoon Lekima brought rainstorms and gales to the city.

Air traffic control issued the top-level red alert for flight delays at both airports and expected capacity to be reduced by 70 percent to 3pm on Saturday and 50 percent midnight Sunday. The alert has been lifted.

China Eastern Airlines has stabilized 32 aircraft being berthed at the city's two airports overnight during the typhoons with cables, the carrier said. Heavy cargos were put inside the cabins to prevent the aircraft from being blown away.

The Shanghai-based China Eastern canceled 815 international and domestic flights at Pudong and Hongqiao airports on Saturday. Additional flights are being operated to take stranded passengers to their destinations.

A large number of passengers at Pudong airport T1 terminal on Sunday morning.

A large number of passengers at Pudong airport T1 terminal on Sunday morning.

Airport staff stablize an aircraft at the Hongqiao airport on Saturday.

Ti Gong

China Eastern Airlines staff stabilizean aircraft at the Hongqiao airport on Saturday night.