NEW DELHI: An Air India flight to Newark in the US had to return to the Delhi airport on the morning of May 27 as cabin crew saw a bat's carcass inside the business class area of the plane just half an hour after take off, sources said on Friday.
The plane had departed from the Delhi airport at 2.20 am on Thursday and no one noticed the bat's carcass before the take off, they mentioned.
The cabin crew members saw the carcass in the eighth row, which is in the business class area of the plane, and informed the pilots, the sources said.
The pilot then informed the air traffic controller (ATC) about the carcass and the plane was turned back, they stated.
The plane, with its crew and passengers, jettisoned its fuel and landed at the Delhi airport around 4.20 am on Thursday, the sources noted.
The Boeing B777-300ER aircraft was cleaned and fumigated later, they said.
Air India did not respond to PTI's request for a statement on this matter.
However, the sources said the airline's management has asked its engineering team for a detailed report regarding this incident.