Bangkok-bound Air India flight 'held back' at Mumbai airport for over 5 hours
Mumbai (PTI): A Bangkok-bound Air India flight from the city was held back for over five hours on June 25, after some hay was found stuck in one of the aircraft's wings, the airline has said.
This was immediately attended to, and the aircraft was subsequently cleared for operation, Air India said in a statement.
The Tata Group-run airline did not share other key details such as the number of passengers and crew on board, the type of aircraft, the scheduled time of departure and for how long the passengers remained stranded at the Mumbai airport.
However, according to flight tracking website flightradar24.com, the flight AI 2354, operated by an Airbus A320Neo plane, was scheduled to depart from Mumbai at 7.45 am. However, it departed after a delay of over five hours -- around 1 pm.
"AI2354 scheduled to operate from Mumbai to Bangkok on 25 June 2025 was held back as some hay was found stuck below the left wing of the operating aircraft," Air India said in a statement on Friday.
This was immediately attended to, and the aircraft was subsequently cleared for operation, the airline said, adding that the source of the hay (getting below the wing)could not be identified.
It also said as the flight crew came under the regulatory flight duty time limitations, the flight could not depart immediately.
The service provider handling the aircraft at Mumbai airport has been instructed to investigate the matter, which has been duly reported to the safety regulator, Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), Air India said in the statement.
The passengers were disembarked and served refreshments, and the flight departed as soon as a fresh set of flight crew reported, the airline added.
The incident came days after the DGCA detected multiple violations related to airlines, airports, aircraft maintenance works, and repeated defects in multiple cases during its surveillance at major airports, an exercise carried out in less than two weeks after the June 12 Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad.
Without disclosing names of the airlines, airports and other entities in relation to the defects, the regulator had on Tuesday said surveillance covered multiple critical areas such as flight operations, airworthiness, ramp safety, Air Traffic Control (ATC), Communication, Navigation and Surveillance (CNS) systems, and pre-flight medical evaluations.
The surveillance was done last week and the DGCA is stepping up efforts to strength the overall safety oversight of the aviation ecosystem.
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Vijayanagara: One dead, 12 injured as trucks hits their vehicle from behind on NH 50
Vijayanagara: One man was killed and 12 others were injured after a truck hit vehicle they were traveling in on the National Highway 50 stretch on the outskirts of Koodligi in the district.
The accident victim, Madhu (27), is learned to have been an employee of Reliance Digital from Andhra Pradesh.
The vehicle was reportedly traveling from Bengaluru to Koodligi and the passengers are learned to have been seriously injured following the collision with the truck, which was found to have a Maharashtra registration.
Koodligi Deputy Superintendent of Police (DySP) Mallesh Dodmani and Circle Inspector Prahlad Channagiri arrived at the accident spot on being informed of the accident.
The police officers and locals rescued the injured passengers and got them shifted to the Koodligi Government Hospital. Some of the passengers were reportedly taken to the Ballari Trauma Care Centre for further treatment.
A case has been registered at the Koodligi Police Station and the officers are investigating the incident.
