An Air India Express flight which reported a hydraulic failure shortly after take-off from the Tiruchirappalli airport in Tamil Nadu has landed safely.

The flight, AXB 613, which was headed to Sharjah with 144 passengers on board, had taken off at 5.40 pm. After the snag was reported, the plane was asked to turn back, but because it was not advisable to attempt a precautionary landing with full fuel on board, the pilots burned some of it by flying around on a set path some distance from Tiruchirappalli.

The plane remained airborne for over two and a half hours, finally landing at 8.15 pm to cheers and clapping from passengers.

Reports about a possible problem with the landing gear began trickling in around 7.50 pm and the Tiruchirappalli airport made preparations for an emergency landing, keeping several ambulances on standby 

Sources said the pilot remained in constant communication with Air Traffic Control and permission was granted for a belly landing if needed, but a successful normal landing was carried out instead. A video showed the aircraft touching down with its landing gear properly engaged. 

An internal investigation has been launched to figure out the possible causes of the snag, the sources said.

Airport authorities had said around 8 pm that the plane was hovering around Tiruchirappalli to burn fuel and, according to flight tracking website Flightadar24, the flight was in the same general area for about two hours.

Tiruchirappalli Airport Director Gopalakrishnan was quoted as saying by news agency IANS that 20 ambulances and 18 fire engines were on standby at the airport for an emergency landing. 

Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu had asked officials to remain on alert and aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) was also coordinating. 

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin said he held an emergency meeting with officials over the phone and asked them to implement all necessary safety measures.

“I am heartened to hear that the #AirIndiaExpress flight has landed safely. Upon receiving news of the landing gear issue, I immediately coordinated an emergency meeting with officials over the phone and instructed them to implement all necessary safety measures, including deploying fire engines, ambulances, and medical assistance,” he posted on X.

I am heartened to hear that the #AirIndiaExpress flight has landed safely. Upon receiving news of the landing gear issue, I immediately coordinated an emergency meeting with officials over the phone and instructed them to implement all necessary safety measures, including…

— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) October 11, 2024

“I have also now directed the District Collector to ensure the continued safety of all the passengers and to provide further assistance. My compliments to the captain and crew for the safe landing,” he said.

A Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) flight from Oslo, Norway to Malaga, Spain was forced to make an emergency landing in Copenhagen, Denmark after a passenger discovered a live mouse in their in-flight meal. As a precautionary measure, the aircraft was diverted on Wednesday. According to SAS spokesperson Oystein Schmidt, the safety of passengers and crew prompted the diversion. Upon landing, the plane underwent a thorough inspection to locate the mouse, BBC reported. 

According to the BBC, airlines usually have strict restrictions about rodents on board, since they can chew through electrical wiring.

Airline spokesperson Oystein Schmidt said, ”This is something that happens extremely rarely. We have established procedures for such situations, which also include a review with our suppliers to ensure this does not happen again.”

One passenger, Jarle Borrestad, wrote on Facebook: ”Believe it or not. A lady next to me at SAS opened the food and jumped a mouse out. Now we have turned around and landed at CPH [Copenhagen Airport] for flight changes.”

He further recalled taking precautions, pulling his socks over his pant legs to prevent the mouse from crawling up. Despite the shocking discovery, he noted that fellow passengers remained remarkably calm, showing no signs of stress. After a brief delay of a few hours in Copenhagen, the passengers continued their journey to Malaga on a replacement aircraft.

This incident follows another rodent-related disruption last week, where a train service in southern England was stopped mid-journey due to two squirrels refusing to leave the carriage. 

A Great Western Railway spokesperson said: “We can confirm that the 0854 Reading to Gatwick was terminated at Redhill after a couple of squirrels boarded the train at Gomshall without tickets, breaching railway byeclaws. We attempted to remove them at Redhill, but one refused to leave and was returned to Reading to bring an end to this nutty tail.”

Kolkata:

A Bengaluru-bound IndiGo flight had to make an emergency landing at the Kolkata airport minutes after take-off on Friday night due to an engine failure, a senior official said.

Flight 6E573 from Kolkata to Bangalore, which became airborne at 10.36 pm on Friday, made an emergency landing at the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International (NSCBI) airport at 10.53 pm after failure of its left engine, he said.

However, no fire or spark was reported, the Airports Authority of India spokesperson said on Saturday.

The full emergency declared at 10.39 pm was withdrawn at 11.08 pm, he said.

Both the runways at NSCBI airport were handed over to the Air Traffic Control (ATC) to make those available for the plane to land back safely, the spokesperson said.

“It was learnt that the left side engine of the aircraft failed after take-off as a result of which it had to come back to Kolkata,” he said.

The airline in a statement said the flight returned to origin after take-off “due to technical issues”.

“The pilot followed necessary procedures and landed back at Kolkata,” it said.

“Passengers were served with refreshments and an alternate aircraft was arranged to operate the flight. We regret the inconvenience caused to the passengers,” the statement added. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

A New Jersey man has been arrested for his alleged disruptive and life-threatening behaviour on an American Airlines flight. Twenty-six-year-old Eric Nicholas Gapco, travelling on flight 2101 from Seattle to Dallas on July 18, exhibited what authorities described as “unruly” behaviour.

Apart from propositioning a female crew member for sex, Gapco also attempted to open the plane’s door mid-flight multiple times, forcing the emergency landing, the New York Post reported. The US Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah said that Gapco removed his shirt mid-flight and began inhaling on a vape pen while cursing and hitting on a crew member, proposing to her for sex. The passenger also allegedly assaulted a flight attendant.

The Delanco man ate too many marijuana edibles before flight leading to his obnoxious behaviour on the plane.

Chaotic camera footage shows Gapco bare-chested and shouting “I am sane!” as crew members attempted to calm him near the plane’s lavatory. A second video shows other passengers assisting the flight crew after tying up Gapco’s hands and feet to get him to sit in the rear seat while the plane diverts to Salt Lake City.

Police arrested the Delanco resident at Salt Lake City International Airport around 11 a.m., local time. According to a criminal complaint, Gapco’s hands and feet were restrained by passengers and crew after he “failed to follow instructions from flight crew to remain in his seat, used a vape pen on board in contradiction of crew instructions, locked himself in a lavatory for a time, screamed, and attempted to open the aircraft exterior doors (forward and aft)” while the plane was in the air.

A federal grand jury indicted Gapco on counts of interfering with a flight crew and attempting to harm an aircraft under the United States’ special aircraft jurisdiction. His initial court appearance is scheduled for Thursday afternoon.

A Korean Air plane was forced to U-turn and make an emergency landing after dropping more than 25,000 feet due to a fault in the aircraft’s pressurization system. According to the Independent, flight KE189 departed Seoul’s Incheon International Airport (ICN) on June 22, 2024, at about 16:45 local time, headed for Taichung International Airport (RMQ) in Taiwan.

However, 50 minutes into its journey, the Boeing 737 Max 8 plane started descending sharply and fell about 26,900 feet in around 15 minutes. According to FL360aero, the message ”pressure system (pressure control function of the aircraft) abnormality” was displayed while the aircraft was flying over Jeju Island.

As a result, several passengers experienced hyperventilation and ear pain, prompting oxygen masks to be released inside the cabin of the plane. One passenger told The Taipei Times that children on the flight were crying when oxygen masks were deployed during the flight’s plunge.

 Another passenger said she felt something was amiss as the aircraft seemed to be hovering in the air and the flight attendants remained in their seats.

Upon landing in Taichung, Taiwan, 17 people were evaluated at medical facilities and were later discharged without severe injuries.

Korean Air apologised to ”all affected by this incident”, and said, ”We are fully cooperating with all relevant authorities to investigate the circumstances surrounding the incident. We have provided comprehensive support to affected passengers, including accommodation, meals, and transportation arrangements.’

The flight resumed on the morning of June 23 with a different aircraft, about 19 hours after the initial departure schedule. passengers, who arrived at Taichung International Airport, said they were frightened and that they would not take a flight for a while, Taipei Times reported.

A Korean Air spokesperson said the airline is conducting a thorough investigation to determine the cause of the pressurisation system malfunction, intending to address any maintenance issues before returning the aircraft to service.

Boeing, the plane that suffered a malfunction during the flight, has been under massive pressure following a string of incidents involving their planes. 

An Air India Express flight from Dubai to Amritsar was diverted to Karachi due to a medical emergency on Saturday.

An airline spokesperson said a passenger had a sudden medical complication onboard the flight and the crew opted to divert the flight to Karachi since it was the closest location to provide immediate medical assistance.

“The airline closely coordinated with the airport and local authorities, and the guest was provided immediate medical services after landing.

“The airport doctor at Karachi administered required medication and after medical assessment, the pax was cleared to fly by the airport medical team,” the spokesperson said in a statement on Sunday.

According to the statement, the flight departed from Dubai at 8:51 am local time and landed in Karachi at 12:30 pm local time. Later, the flight departed for Amritsar at 2:30 pm (Karachi local time).

“We would like to extend our gratitude to the local authorities at Karachi airport for their immediate response and help,” the spokesperson said. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Mumbai:

An Akasa aircraft from Mumbai with 166 people onboard made an emergency landing at Varanasi airport on Friday after the airline received a bomb threat message on social media, according to an airline spokesperson.

The airline said the captain of the flight QP 1498 received an “emergency alert” from the Varanasi Air Traffic Controller and followed all required emergency procedures and landed the plane safely at Varanasi.

“At 1130 am, Akasa Air got a bomb threat message on social media. We informed the local police in Mumbai and initiated the procedure for filing an FIR,” the spokesperson said.

Subsequently, the emergency response mechanism was put in place and as part of the security protocol, the airline informed all the 16 airports from where it operates about the bomb threat and put them on alert, the spokesperson said.

The spokesperson said the threat was later categorised as “non-specific”.

According to the airline, there were 166 people onboard, including 159 passengers, 1 infant and 6 operating operating crew members in the Mumbai-Varanasi flight.

Varanasi Airport Director Puneet Gupta said that after a thorough security check, nothing objectionable was found and the aircraft was declared safe.

“Akasa Air flight QP 1498, flying from Mumbai to Varanasi on September 29, 2023 received an emergency alert from Air Traffic Control. The captain followed all required emergency procedures and landed safely in Varanasi,” the airline said in a statement.

The airline said that all the mandated security procedures have been completed and the aircraft has subsequently been declared safe.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Singapore:

An Air China flight made an emergency landing in Singapore on Sunday after its left engine caught fire, leaving nine of the 155 people on board with minor injuries, authorities said.

Flight CA403 from the southwestern Chinese city of Chengdu “encountered smoke in the forward cargo hold and lavatory” while on its way to the city-state, Changi Airport said in a statement on Facebook.

The plane landed at around 4:15 pm (0815 GMT) and “all passengers and crew have evacuated safely”, the statement said.

“The fire in the left engine has been put out,” it said.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) said there were 146 passengers and nine crew on board.

“Nine passengers sustained minor injuries related to smoke inhalation and abrasions during the evacuation process. They have since been attended to,” it said.

A video clip posted on X, formerly Twitter, showed passengers exiting what appeared to be the stricken aircraft down an emergency slide onto the tarmac.

Pratt&Whitney engine on fire, Air China flight evacuated on Singapore runway.

CA403 TFU-SIN squawking 7700 shortly before landing at Singapore due to PW1100G engine fire. Heavy smoke in cabin, crew evacuated the plane on runway.

The aircraft is a 4-year old A320neo B-305J. pic.twitter.com/CHBTPt8Du2

— FATIII Aviation (@FATIIIAviation) September 10, 2023

The runway was closed briefly and one aircraft was diverted to the nearby island of Batam in Indonesia, CAAS said.

It said the Transport Safety Investigation Bureau was investigating the incident and has contacted its Chinese counterpart to help.

Air China did not respond immediately to an AFP query.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)