India: Kolkata-bound IndiGo plane skids off runway, wheels veer off tarmac

The 98 passengers of a Kolkata-bound IndiGo flight had a harrowing experience when it skidded off the runway while taxiing for take-off at Assam's Jorhat airport on Thursday. Miraculously, all of them were safe and sound.

The IndiGo flight 6E-757 was scheduled to take-off for Kolkata on Thursday at 2.20pm, as per the scheduled departure time. While taxiing for take off on the runway, the aircraft's wheels veered off the tarmac and got stuck in a muddy field near the runway.

Passengers were deboarded some time after the incident with the help of the Indian Air Force (IAF) maintaining the airport.

The authorities tried hard (for about six hours) to resolve the issue but could not, and consequently, the flight had to be cancelled.

"IndiGo flight 6E-757 operating from Jorhat to Kolkata returned back to the bay. While taxiing out, the pilot was advised that one of the main wheel[s], had partially run over the grass adjacent to the taxiway," IndiGo said.

Although no passenger was hurt in this accident, an internal team has been constituted for investigation purposes.

"As a precaution, the pilot held the taxi procedure and asked for a necessary inspection. The aircraft was taken back to the bay at Jorhat for inspections. During the initial inspection, there were no abnormalities observed. As a matter of caution, the maintenance team initiated a thorough inspection. The flight was cancelled," the IndiGo statement added.

Several untoward incidents related to IndiGo flights have occurred, in the recent past.

Minister of Civil Aviation Jyotiraditya Scindia, in the Lok Sabha, stated that a total of 478 technical snag-related occurrences were reported in planes between July 1, 2021, and June 30, 2022.

"During operations, an aircraft may experience technical snags due to malfunctioning of components/equipment fitted on the aircraft which require rectification by the airlines for continued safe, efficient and reliable air transport service. These technical snags are reported by the flight crew on receiving an aural or visual warning in the cockpit or an indication of an inoperative/faulty system or while experiencing difficulty in operating the aircraft," said Minister of Civil Aviation Jyotiraditya Scindia in the Lok Sabha, on Thursday.

On July 17, an IndiGo flight (6E-1406) from Sharjah to Hyderabad was diverted to Pakistan after a glitch in the aircraft was reported by the pilot.

The airline had said that the plane had to make a precautionary landing in Karachi and all passengers in it were safe.

A release from IndiGo read:

"The pilot observed a technical defect. Necessary procedures were followed and as a precaution, the aircraft was diverted to Karachi. An additional flight is being sent to Karachi to fly the passengers to Hyderabad."

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