IndiGo Srinagar flight crew's request to enter Pak airspace to avoid turbulence was rejected: DGCA
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New Delhi (PTI): Aviation watchdog DGCA on Friday said the crew of the IndiGo flight from the national capital to Srinagar on Wednesday had sought permission to enter Pakistan airspace to avoid turbulence but the request was rejected.
In a detailed statement about the incident, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said there was no injury to any passengers who were on the flight and that the aircraft's "nose radome" was damaged.
The incident of the aircraft encountering turbulence is being probed by the DGCA.
On Wednesday, IndiGo's A321 neo aircraft operating flight 6E 2142 encountered hailstorm and severe turbulence near Pathankot.
"As per crew statement, they requested Northern control (IAF) for deviation towards left (International Border) due to weather on the route, however, it was not approved.
"Later, the crew contacted Lahore to enter into their airspace to avoid the weather but the same was refused too," DGCA said.
According to the regulator, the crew initially attempted to return back but as they were close to the thunderstorm cloud, they decided to penetrate the weather.
"Subsequently, they encountered hailstorm and severe turbulence. Crew chose to continue at the same heading to exit the weather by the shortest route towards Srinagar," the statement said.
On Thursday, PTI reported that the Lahore ATC had rejected the flight pilot's request to use the Pakistan airspace to avoid turbulence.
While in a thunderstorm cloud, the regulator said warnings of Angle of Attack fault, Alternate Law protection lost, backup Speed scale unreliable were triggered.
"Due to updraft and downdraft encountered by the aircraft the Autopilot tripped and aircraft speed had wide variations. As a result, Maximum Operating Speed/Maximum operating Mach (VMO/MMO) warnings and repeated stall warnings were triggered," the statement said.
During this period, DGCA said the aircraft rate of descent reached 8,500 fpm (feet per minute) and crew flew the aircraft manually till they exited the hailstorm.
"After carrying out all checklist actions (ECAM actions), the crew declared 'PAN PAN' to Srinagar ATC and requested for RADAR vectors and made a safe landing with Auto Thrust operating normally," the statement said.
Generally, 'PAN PAN' refers to an emergency situation.
The regulator said the matter is under investigation and that there was no injury to any of the passengers on-board the flight.
"Post flight walk around revealed damage to the Nose radome," the statement said.
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Kerala reels under heavy rains; IMD issues red alert in three districts
Thiruvananthapuram, Jul 26 (PTI): Heavy rains since Friday night have caused widespread damage across several parts of Kerala, raising water levels in rivers and dams and uprooting trees, which resulted in one death and injuries to several persons.
It also prompted the India Meteorological Department, on Saturday evening, to upgrade its rain alert status in Ernakulam, Idukki, and Thrissur districts from 'orange' to 'red'.
It also issued an 'orange alert' for Pathanamthitta, Kottayam, Palakkad, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur, and Kasaragod districts, and a 'yellow alert' for the remaining three.
A 'red alert' indicates "heavy to extremely heavy" rainfall of over 20 cm in 24 hours. An 'orange alert' denotes "very heavy" rainfall of 11 to 20 cm, while a 'yellow alert' signals "heavy rain" between 6 and 11 cm.
The IMD said rains are likely to persist over the next five days, accompanied by strong winds reaching speeds of 50-60 kmph till Sunday.
Fishing has been advised against along the Kerala-Karnataka-Lakshadweep coasts until July 30 due to rough seas and strong winds.
In Kozhikode, overnight rains and strong winds uprooted trees and caused extensive damage to houses and vehicles, prompting shifting of several families to safer places. However, no one was injured.
Power lines and electric poles were brought down, disrupting supply in many parts of the district.
Similar incidents were reported from Kottayam, Palakkad, and Kannur districts.
In Kannur, one person died when a tree fell on his house. In similar incidents in the district, few others were injured.
In Kottayam, besides the damage to homes due to uprooted trees, the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) suffered a loss of Rs 2.43 crore due to several electric poles and power cables being brought down by the strong winds and rain in the district on Friday and Saturday.
In Kuttanad and Upper Kuttanad regions of Alappuzha district, the heavy rains resulted in inundation of several low-lying areas, including roads and homes, and rise in river waters to dangerous levels.
With water levels rising in their catchment areas, shutters of the Banasura Sagar dam in Wayanad, the Aliyar dam in Palakkad and Kakkayam Dam in Kozhikode district have been raised to release excess water.
Residents living downstream have been advised to stay vigilant.
The Irrigation Design and Research Board (IDRB) and Central Water Commission (CWC) have issued alerts for several rivers that have "risen dangerously", including the Manimala, Achankovil, and Pamba rivers in Pathanamthitta; Vamanapuram in Thiruvananthapuram; Pallikkal in Kollam, Muvattupuzha in Ernakulam and Thodupuzha in Idukki.
People residing along riverbanks have been urged to exercise caution and avoid entering or crossing the water bodies.
Meanwhile, the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) has warned of possible sea surges and high waves reaching 2.8 to 3.4 metres along the Kasaragod and Alappuzha coasts till 8.30 pm on Sunday.
Fishermen and coastal residents have been advised to remain alert, it added.
