IndiGo flight fails to land at Srinagar, returns

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, June 30

Air passengers were at the receiving end today as the IndiGo flight from Chandigarh to Srinagar could not land at its destination after a tyre of an Air India flight burst while landing at the Srinagar airport. The flight had to return to the city. The SpiceJet flight, scheduled to take off from the city for Srinagar at 2.15 pm, was cancelled.

The IndiGo flight, which took off from the local airport at 1.20 pm, reached Srinagar but could not land. “We kept hovering over the Srinagar airport for around an hour. An announcement was made in the plane that the landing would take place only after getting confirmation. Later, we were brought back to Chandigarh at around 4 pm,” Rajeev, a passenger from Chandigarh, told Chandigarh Tribune.

High drama was witnessed when the flight reached Chandigarh as passengers refused to get down from the plane until they got a confirmation regarding the next flight. This led to heated arguments between the IndiGo staff and the passengers.

“The flight staff misbehaved with us. Till late evening, we were left guessing. Though some of us were told that we would get tickets from Delhi to Srinagar, there was no confirmation. We were not even offered water when the flight landed back here. It was sheer harassment,” said Rajeev.

The passengers called up the police regarding their ordeal. The police later pacified them. There were over 100 passengers on the flight, of whom 70 were Amarnath yatra pilgrims.

Refuting the allegations, a spokesperson for IndiGo said since the flight could not land, they had either issued either fresh tickets or given a refund to the passengers.

The SpiceJet had to cancel its 2.15 pm flight. Over 100 passengers, who were scheduled to take the flight, raised slogans against the airline alleging harassment.

The manager of the Chandigarh airport said, “The IndiGo flight had to return while the SpiceJet flight to Srinagar was cancelled due to runway repair work there.”

Tyre of Air India flight bursts at Srinagar airport

All air traffic at the Srinagar airport had to be halted after a tyre of the Air India flight burst. The plane was carrying security personnel from Jammu to Srinagar. The tyre burst led to a groove on the runway, making it unsuitable for landing and take-off.