By Online Desk
PATNA: Altogether 185 passengers and crew had a providential escape on June 19 when a Delhi-bound SpiceJet flight caught fire mid-air. The aircraft then made an emergency landing at the Jay Prakash Narayan International Airport.
The flight (SG-725), destined for New Delhi, had taken off from Patna Airport at 12 noon, however, soon, smoke started oozing out from the engine. All passengers and crew members escaped unhurt in the incident, said an airport official.
Patna district magistrate Chandrashekhar said that residents of Phulwarisharif, an area close to the airport, alerted the district administration and airport authorities after they noticed smoke coming out of the aircraft. He said airport administration then contacted Air Traffic Control (ATC), who in turn alerted the pilot.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) officials said that the plane (VT-SYZ), prima facie, was involved in air turnback as the cabin crew informed PIC about sparks coming out of the engine.
“The cockpit crew of Patna-Delhi SpiceJet flight after take-off during rotation suspected a bird hit on engine No. 1. As a precautionary measure, the flight captain shut down the affected engine and returned to Patna. The post-flight inspection shows the bird hit with three fan blades damaged,” ANI quoted SpiceJet Spox as saying.
#WATCH Delhi bound SpiceJet flight returns to Patna airport after reporting technical glitch which prompted fire in the aircraft; All passengers safely rescued pic.twitter.com/Vvsvq5yeVJ
— ANI (@ANI) June 19, 2022
Meanwhile, Patna Airport Director said they are arranging an alternative flight for the flyers and the matter has been sent for investigation.
“On June 19, SpiceJet B737-800 aircraft was operating SG-723 (Patna-Delhi).On take-off, during rotation, the cockpit crew suspected a bird hit on Engine #. As a precautionary measure and as per SOP, Captain shutdown the affected engine and decided to return to Patna,” SpiceJet said in the statement. The aircraft landed safely in Patna and passengers were safely deboarded, it said, adding that post-flight inspection showed three fan blades were damaged due to the bird hit.
(With inputs from Ramashankar)
