New Delhi:

A Varanasi-bound IndiGo flight today received a bomb threat at the Delhi airport, prompting authorities to inspect the plane, officials said.

The flight, 6E2211, was scheduled to take off from Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport around 5 am and was stopped on the runway minutes before departure.

“At 05:40 am, a phone call was received from the IGI airport regarding a bomb threat. A message ‘BOMB BLAST @30 MINUTES’ was written on a piece of paper inside the lavatory of the flight and was found by the pilot,” an official said.

The aircraft, with 176 passengers onboard, was immediately taken to the isolation bay for further necessary action, the official said, adding that a quick response team was deployed, which has so far not found any suspicious items.

All passengers were deboarded through the emergency door and are safe, the official said.

#WATCH | Passengers of the IndiGo flight 6E2211 operating from Delhi to Varanasi were evacuated through the emergency door after a bomb threat was reported on the flight. All passengers are safe, flight is being inspected.

(Viral video confirmed by Aviation authorities) https://t.co/el2q5jCatxpic.twitter.com/ahVc0MSiXz

— ANI (@ANI) May 28, 2024

The IndiGo also released an official statement and said that the aircraft was taken to a remote bay as per guidelines by airport security agencies.

“The flight is currently undergoing inspection. Post completion of all security checks, the aircraft will be positioned back in the terminal area,” the airline said.

ALSO READ | Mumbai Cops Receive Hoax Message Threatening To Blow Up Taj Hotel, Airport

Earlier this month, a tissue paper with the word ‘bomb’ written on it was found on an Air India flight lavatory at Delhi airport, but it had turned out to be a hoax.

Police had said that they received information regarding a tissue paper found in the lavatory of an Air India flight scheduled to depart for Vadodara on May 15, with the word ‘bomb’ written on it.

“Following standard security protocols, a thorough inspection was conducted, and no suspicious items were found,” an official had said.

Several hospitals and schools in Delhi have recently been targeted with bomb threat emails, that claimed the presence of explosives on their premises. However, investigators found the threats to be false alarms.

New Delhi:

 An IndiGo flight, which operated from Patna to Ahmedabad, was diverted to Indore due to a medical emergency on board.

The crew on flight number 6E-178 assisted the unwell passenger, the airline said.

“Prioritising his well being, the captain diverted the flight en route. On arrival, the passenger was referred for further treatment. Any inconvenience caused to other passengers is regretted,” the airline said in the brief statement.

Further details, including name and address, about the unwell passenger was not known at the time of filing this report.

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

A woman recently took to social media and shared her harrowing experience with Indigo Airlines. Yavanika Raj Shah, an X (formerly Twitter) user, shared a picture of a missing seat cushion on an IndiGo flight. She was flying from Bengaluru to Bhopal on flight 6E 6465. The airlines took note of the same and expressed regret. 

“Beautiful @IndiGo6E-I do hope I land safely. This is your flight from Bengaluru to Bhopal 6E 6465,” she said on the microblogging website along with a picture.

Beautiful @IndiGo6E — I do hope I land safely!
This is your flight from Bengaluru to Bhopal 6E 6465. pic.twitter.com/DcPJTq3zka

— Yavanika Raj Shah (@yavanika_shah) March 6, 2024

Responding to the same, IndiGo said that the cushions were replaced for cleaning and the cabin crew had informed the customers. They wrote, “Ma’am, thank you for speaking with us. The seat cushions were replaced prior to the flight for cleaning purposes. Our cabin crew promptly informed the customers who were allotted these seats. This is a standard practice for cleaning during transit as and when required. “

Ma’am, thank you for speaking with us. The seat cushions were replaced prior to the flight for cleaning purposes. Our cabin crew promptly informed the customers who were allotted these seats. This is a standard practice for cleaning during transit as and when required. (1/2)

— IndiGo (@IndiGo6E) March 6, 2024

They added, “We are committed to providing the highest standards of cleanliness and hygiene to our customers. Team IndiGo.”

Since being shared, her post has amassed the attention of many social media users. It has amassed over a million views and 10,000 likes.

A person wrote, “Wow massaging seats.”

“Maybe the previous passengers carried them off,” said a person.

“Saw a similar seat while flying Indigo from Mumbai to Indore last week. They fixed the cushion only after the actual passenger turned up. May be they are facing cushion shortage and using as per demand!” remarked a user.

Another added, “Clearly indigo is not for beginners”

“This is Indigo’s all new ‘Minimalist Sky Lounge’,” said a person.

An X user also said, “I heard about breath taking but never heard about seat taking. This has to be the first time.”

Chief Aircraft Acquisition and Financing Officer of IndiGo said the new aircraft will be instrumental in supporting the company’s expansion plans and strengthening our position in both domestic and international markets.
| Photo Credit: The Hindu

Singapore-headquartered BOC Aviation Limited on February 14 said it has entered into a finance lease transaction with InterGlobe Aviation Limited (IndiGo). The deal has been signed for four Airbus A320NEO aircraft.

“We are pleased to be closing another four finance leases with IndiGo,” said Steven Townend, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, BOC Aviation.

“We continue to work closely with our long-time customer to support its expansion strategy as it builds a fleet of the latest technology fuel-efficient aircraft,” Mr. Townend said in a release.

The aircraft are all powered by CFM LEAP-1A engines. All four aircraft are scheduled for delivery in 2024.

“We are pleased to announce that we have extended our partnership with BOC Aviation through a lease agreement for four Airbus A320NEO aircraft,” said Riyaz Peermohamed, Chief Aircraft Acquisition and Financing Officer of IndiGo.

He further said that these aircraft will be instrumental in supporting the company’s expansion plans and strengthening our position in both domestic and international markets.

“At IndiGo, we are dedicated to providing our customers with unparalleled travel experiences, and this partnership will allow us to continue delivering affordable, on-time, and hassle-free travel across our extensive 6E network,” he said.

Bhubaneswar:

A Delhi-bound IndiGo flight made an emergency landing at the airport here on Monday due to some technical snag, an official said.

All passengers are safe, he said.

The aircraft made the landing 40 minutes after taking off from the Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA).

“After the detection of technical problems mid-air, the Delhi-bound IndiGo flight made the emergency landing at the airport at 8.20 am,” BPIA Director Prasanna Pradhan told PTI.

A full-scale emergency was declared, and the aircraft landed safely at the airport, he said.

“All passengers are safe. We suspect that the technical problem was developed due to a bird hit,” the official said, adding that the aircraft can again fly only after getting clearances from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation.

“Shortly after taking off, the pilot informed us about the technical problem and the aircraft made the landing at the Bhubaneswar airport safely,” Trinath Lenka, a passenger on the flight, said.

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

An IndiGo Airlines cabin baggage security check tag is pictured on a passenger’s luggage at Bengaluru International Airport in Bangalore. File
| Photo Credit: Reuters

IndiGo’s attempts to save about six kg of fuel per flight, by recommending soft landings using only three of an aircraft’s wing flaps, may be leading to an increase in unsafe landings, according to its pilots.

On Friday, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) imposed a fine of ₹30 lakh on IndiGo for tail strikes during recent landings. The airline’s pilots claim that such unsafe landings are a direct result of IndiGo’s “over-emphasis on reducing fuel usage”, as well as mounting fatigue levels among pilots.

Following four tail strike incidents on IndiGo’s Airbus A321 aircraft within a span of six months this year, the regulator carried out a special audit of the airline and found “systemic deficiencies” in “operations, training and engineering procedures”, according to a DGCA statement.

Subsequently, the regulator served a showcause notice on the airline, to which IndiGo responded, insisting that no procedures had been violated. The regulator found its reply unsatisfactory. Apart from imposing the ₹30 lakh fine on the airline, the DGCA has also ordered it to amend its procedures in line with DGCA and Airbus guidelines.

IndiGo said it is examining the DGCA order and will respond to it in due time, indicating that it may even appeal against it.

Risky landings

Responding to The Hindu‘s query on the nature of deficiencies discovered, a senior DGCA official said, “As a company policy, the crew were asked to carry out flap 3 landing every time, which is not in line with the Airbus Flight Crew Operating Manual (FCOM) procedures.”

A flap 3 landing, known as a soft landing, involves only three of the four flaps on the wing and produces less drag, as a result of which less fuel is burned than in a flap full landing, known as a hard landing. But during a flap 3 landing, the aircraft’s nose is pitched slightly hgher than in flap full, while its tail is down, therefore increasing the chances of a tail strike. The Airbus A321, which was involved in the recent unsafe landing incidents, is longer than the A320 aircraft that dominate IndiGo’s fleet, which means that the risk of a tail strike is higher.

Pilots at IndiGo have been told that a flap 3 landing could save the airline 6 kg of fuel per landing. Though Airbus doesn’t prohibit flap 3 landings, they can be trickier for runways at an elevation such as those in Mumbai (50 feet), Delhi (800 feet), Bengaluru (3000 feet) where there is a possibility of aircraft unable to land within the touchdown zone or overshooting the runway.

Tracking pilots’ fuel usage

Some of the airline’s pilots who spoke to The Hindu on the condition of anonymity said that they preferred not to carry out a flap 3 landing because of the risks involved. Though the airline only recommends the flap 3 landing, letting pilots have the final say, there is always the fear of a “phone call from above”, pilots said. They also worried about how defying the airline’s recommendations could affect their prospects within the company, especially if they wished to apply for a management position.

“What if I am incapacitated? Will my co-pilot be able perform a flap 3 landing? I am not sure, and therefore in the interest of safety I never conduct this form of landing,” said one IndiGo captain.

Another pilot worried that the airline was keeping a strict vigil on how much fuel they each consumed on their flights. “There are meetings where we are shown a graph plotting fuel spent by different pilots. Though the individual data is anonymised, that can’t be hard to extract,” the pilot said.

Pilots also spoke at length about an “exponential increase” in duty timings and mounting fatigue. They urged that the regulator must investigate whether the tail strikes were also due to mental and physical exertion of pilots.

“The tail strikes are a matter of the luck of the draw. Some of those in the cockpit were senior captains who train other pilots. So, why is this happening? Pilots are not getting enough sleep, which is impacting their decision-making capabilities. I sometimes get only 15 hours of rest period between my flights. We are on minimum rest, and maximum duty hours. Has the DGCA looked into pilot fatigue reports submitted to the airline, forcing many of us to report sick to work?” asked a captain at IndiGo with nearly 15 years of experience.

The DGCA has slapped a three-month license suspension on the pilot involved in a tail strike during a landing in Ahmedabad on July 15. The co-pilot’s licence has been suspended for one month.