NEW DELHI: Within two days of the horrific Ahmedabad plane crash, there was another near mishap of an Air India flight during take-off from Delhi to Vienna in bad weather.
The First Captain and co-pilot managed to land the Boeing -777 safely at Vienna airport. The duo has been suspended by the airline and the aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), is now probing the incident.
A DGCA official confirmed to TNIE that an inquiry into an incident involving an Air India flight was on.
According to a flight tracker website, AI 187 took off from Terminal 3 of the Indira Gandhi International Airport around 3 am on June 14. The flight is said to have lost altitude while taking off due to the turbulent weather and the cockpit had received numerous warning messages. The pilots though managed to steer the aircraft safely to Vienna.
A source said, “The pilots reported the matter to the airline and they alerted the DGCA about it, which is a mandatory requirement. The internal probe has been completed,” said a source.
An Air India spokesperson said, “Upon receipt of the pilot's report, the matter was disclosed to DGCA in accordance with regulations. Subsequently, upon receipt of data from the aircraft's recorders, further investigation was initiated. The pilots have been off-rostered pending the outcome of the investigation.”
Air India refused to share details citing the ongoing inquiry.
On June 12, AI-171, a Boeing-787 flight crashed just outside the Ahmedabad airport killing 275 people including 241 on board the plane.