A Leh-bound SpiceJet flight made an emergency landing in Delhi shortly after take-off after one of the aircraft’s engine was hit by a bird, an airline spokesperson said.
Flight SG123 took off at 10.29 am before making an air turn back and landing safely at around 11am. An airline spokesperson said, “SpiceJet B737 aircraft operating SG-123 from Delhi to Leh returned to Delhi after suffering a bird hit on engine 2. The aircraft landed safely in Delhi and passengers deplaned normally.”
Due to the incident in Delhi, the return flight from Leh, which was scheduled to depart for the national capital at 12.20 pm, was cancelled. Outraged passengers protested at the Leh airport and engaged in arguments with the ground staff.
Last week, two flights — Air India and Air India Express — were forced to make emergency landings due to technical errors.
On May 19, the Air India Express flight, travelling from Bengaluru to Kochi with 179 passengers and six crew members on board, made an emergency landing at the Bengaluru airport after a fire was reported in the right engine.
Just two days earlier, on May 17, the Air India flight, which took off from Delhi with 175 passengers, turned back and landed in the national capital after a fire in its air conditioning unit.
On May 1, a New Delhi-bound Vistara flight from Bhubaneswar returned minutes after takeoff and made an emergency landing after the aircraft was caught in a hailstorm and suffered damage.