‘Wrong Flight’, Air India Took U Turn After 8 Hrs!

Usually, vehicles on road take U turn when there is no way ahead or when there is a traffic diversion. In a rather bizzare incident, a flight took a U turn after being in air for nearly eight hours, leaving all passengers on board anxious over the reasons for returning to the starting point instead of destination.

Generally, flights are diverted or forced to return back when there is any unforeseen issue or due to inclement weather conditions. But, an Air India flight bound to Canada returned to Delhi after the officials at airline headquarters realised that the aircraft was not authorised to operate in the destination country.

By the time the operational issue was noticed, the aircraft had already entered the Chinese airspace near Kunming. But, there is no other option except to take a U turn mid air and comeback to its origin. With that much time spent on its way back, the aircraft flew for a total of 7 hours and 54 minutes to land where it had taken off from.

The aircraft in question was identified as Boeing 777-200LR. However, Air India currently has approval to operate only its Boeing 777-300ER fleet services to Canada going by its prior agreement. Aviation approvals granted by countries can vary between airline players. While some are issued on an airline basis, others are specific to aircraft types or even to individual aircraft tail numbers.

The Flight bearing No. AI185 took off from Delhi at 11:34 AM on Thursday with passengers and crew on board. It was supposed to land in Vancouver through an unusual eastward route due to the ongoing issues in Guf countries. However, after completing nearly four hours journey, the pilot was instructed to return to Delhi with immediate effect. By evening 07:30 PM, the flight landed back in Delhi.

While the operational lapse is likely to result in serious financial implications given that it was a Boeing aircraft, the gross negligence on the part of the airlines will come under the scrutiny of Civil Aviation department of the government. Meanwhile, Air India has issued a statement expressing its regret over the inconvenience caused to passengers.