A SpiceJet flight had to return to Delhi shortly after take-off following a “technical issue” that prompted the airport in the Indian capital to declare a full emergency on Tuesday.
A Boeing 737 aircraft operated by SpiceJet was flying from Delhi to Leh city in the northern federal territory of Ladakh with around 150 passengers on board when it developed a technical issue, the aviation company said.
The plane took off from Delhi at 6.08am and made an emergency return at 6.49am. All passengers were evacuated safely.
A full emergency was declared at the airport as a precautionary measure, and the aircraft landed without further complications.
The aircraft returned due to an engine failure, news agency ANI reported, adding that initial inputs suggested the primary cause was linked to a problem with the aircraft’s second engine.
However, SpiceJet’s official statement described it only as a “technical issue”, adding that flight SG121 turned back as a precaution and landed safely.
“A SpiceJet flight operating from Delhi to Leh on February 24 returned to Delhi after experiencing a technical issue. The aircraft landed safely in Delhi, and all passengers were disembarked normally,” a statement said.
“There was no fire warning in the cockpit”.
The Independent has reached out to SpiceJet for comment.
It comes as India’s aviation regulator investigates the deadliest plane crash in decades, which killed 260 people in June last year. The London-bound Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner crashed less than a minute after taking off from Ahmedabad airport, killing all but one passenger on board.
Late on Monday, an air ambulance with seven people on board crashed in the eastern Indian state of Jharkhand. All seven people onboard, including a patient who was being airlifted for Delhi, died in the crash that happened amid severe weather conditions, including strong winds, heavy rain, lightning, and thunder.
