Kolkata, June 17: An Air India flight traveling from San Francisco to Mumbai, with a stopover in Kolkata, was grounded at Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport early Tuesday morning due to a technical issue identified in one of its engines.
The flight, designated AI-180, touched down at Kolkata Airport around 12:45 a.m. It was scheduled to depart for Mumbai at 2 a.m., aiming to arrive at 4:50 a.m.
Unfortunately, the flight was unable to take off as planned because of the engine malfunction. At approximately 5:20 a.m., the captain made the decision to have passengers disembark for safety reasons.
The captain reassured passengers that this precaution was taken to ensure their safety during the flight.
Once the passengers exited the aircraft, it was moved to the tarmac where ground and technical staff began investigating the engine issues.
All passengers are reported to be safe. As of the latest updates, AI-180 remains at Kolkata Airport for further technical assessments, and arrangements for an alternative flight for the affected passengers are underway.
In a related incident, on June 12, an Air India flight tragically crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad en route to London's Gatwick Airport, resulting in the loss of all but one passenger.
Additionally, earlier this week, an Air India Express flight (IX 1511) encountered a fault before its departure from Hindon Airport in Uttar Pradesh to Kolkata, which was identified during the pilot's pre-takeoff checks.
The aircraft was delayed on the runway for about an hour due to turbulence but eventually continued to its destination.
Now, AI-180's departure from Kolkata has been delayed due to engine-related technical issues.