HYDERABAD: Passengers survived anxious moments after smoke began emanating in the cabin of a SpiceJet flight on its way to Hyderabad from Goa on Wednesday night. All of them heaved a sigh of relief when the flight made an emergency landing at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) here.
All 86 passengers were evacuated safely through the emergency exit. However, one passenger received minor scratches on the feet while exiting the plane, an official said. According to authorities, the pilot of Flight SG 3735 noticed smoke and alerted the Air Traffic Controller, who in turn alerted the ground staff. Following the incident, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) ordered a probe.
“A full-scale emergency was declared due to smoke observed in the cockpit on Flight No SG 3735, GOI-HYD on Wednesday around 11 pm. Eighty-six passengers were on board. GHIAL ARFF (Aircraft Rescue Fire Fighting) team evacuated all passengers safely. Nine flights got diverted due to the incident,” said a communique from GHIAL.
Meanwhile, SpiceJet has been facing operational and financial headwinds in recent times, and it is already under enhanced surveillance of the DGCA. On July 27, DGCA directed SpiceJet to operate on a maximum of 50 per cent capacity of its flights.