Air India pilot averts major accident at Pune airport

Air India pilot averts major accident at Pune airport

Pune: Due to Air India pilot’s awareness, a major accident was averted at Pune airport on Saturday morning. The aircraft has been slightly damaged. 

The incident took place when the aircraft was on the runway to take-off and suddenly, the pilot noticed a jeep and a man on the runway.

Showing alertness, the pilot took off before the designated place. Though a major catastrophe was averted, this resulted in the tail striking the surface of the runway, damaging the fuselage. However, the plane landed safely at Delhi airport.

Air India flight AI 852, which was operated on Airbus A321 aircraft, was ready to take off from Pune airport at 7.55 am. Around 180 passengers were inside the aircraft.

As per the information shared by a source, “The flight was ready to take-off at a speed of 222 Kmph. During the take-off, the pilot saw a man and a jeep standing on the runway. To avoid a collision, the pilot decided to take off the plane before the designated place. The incident is now being investigated by the aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).”

The Pune airport is also an Indian Air Force airfield, where Armed Forces personnel carry out routine activity. The DGCA has asked the Indian Air Force to preserve the recording of Air Traffic Control.

The DGCA official said that Air India has been asked to provide a voice recorder located in the cockpit so that information can be collected about the incident. 

Another DGCA official said after the initial investigation into the incident, the aircraft has been removed from service for investigation. Air India has been asked to cooperate in the investigation with Pune ATC (Air Traffic Control). Evidence is also being scrutinised on the runway. 

Dhananjay Kumar, Air India spokesperson, said, “The aircraft that was scheduled to operate AI 825 to Srinagar was observed to have certain marks towards the empennage (tail) area. The aircraft has been withdrawn for detailed investigation. 

The CVR and SSFDR (solid-state flight data recorder) readouts would be carried out and the findings would be shared appropriately.”

According to Indian Air Force officials, a service vehicle was cleared for the routine task on the runway at Pune airport on Saturday. “It reached close to the runway at a time when an Air India flight was on the take-off roll. Due to the presence of the vehicle near the runway, the Air India pilot had to do an earlier rotation than what was planned by the crew. The matter is under investigation by the IAF,” said an IAF official.

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