NEW DELHI: A technical glitch on board an Air India flight from New Delhi to London Heathrow on Thursday morning forced the aircraft, carrying over 300 passengers, to return to Indira Gandhi International Airport nearly seven hours after departure. The air return was made while the aircraft was flying over Saudi Arabia.
AI 111, an Airbus A350-941 aircraft, departed from Terminal 3 at 5.43 am, according to the flight tracking website FlightAware. It landed back at Delhi airport at 12.52 pm.
Mapping by the platform Flightradar24 reveals that the flight had crossed Oman and entered Saudi Arabia when a U-turn was made.
Confirming the incident, Air India said in a statement, "Flight AI111, operating from Delhi to London on 26 March, made a precautionary air-return to Delhi following a suspected technical issue.
The aircraft landed safely and, consistent with Air India’s high safety standards, it is currently subject to extensive technical evaluations, which will require additional time to complete."
Air India is making every effort to ensure passengers are able to continue their journey to London at the earliest, it said.
The statement added, "During this period, our airport team at Delhi is extending full support to our guests and crew. All immediate assistance, including refreshments, is being provided."
This marks the second such diversion of an Air India flight towards London within four days. On March 23, AI133, operating from Bengaluru to London Heathrow (LHR), made a diversion en route to Jeddah following a technical issue.