New Delhi: An IndiGo flight from New Delhi to Ahmedabad made a priority landing after smoke was detected mid-air in the cockpit and cabin of the A320 aircraft. The incident was reported on Wednesday. The sources said that the pilot issued a Pan-Pan call and sought a priority landing from the Ahmedabad ATC.
An IndiGo spokesperson said its flight made a priority landing due to an “unusual” smell. A ‘Pan-Pan’ call is the one which is issued in a less urgent situation but that still requires attention from air traffic control.
“The flight 6E6373 took off from New Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport at 7.42 am for Ahmedabad.
However, mid-air the pilot noticed smoke in the aircraft cockpit and cabin and issued a Pan-Pan call to seek priority landing from the Ahmedabad ATC. The Airbus A320 plane landed at 8.57 am, about half an hour ahead of the scheduled arrival time,” the source said.
Last year on December 11, a Jaipur-Kolkata IndiGo flight with at least 136 passengers on board had made an emergency landing in Kolkata after smoke engulfed the plane mid-air.
“An IndiGo flight 6E6373 operating on Delhi-Ahmedabad route on January 1 made a priority landing at Ahmedabad (airport),” IndiGo had said in the statement.
The Airbus A320 Neo planes with Pratt & Whitney engines, which are being operated by budget carriers IndiGo and GoAir, have been frequently facing serious glitches mid-air and on the ground since their induction.
