New Delhi: Days after a Mumbai-Delhi Vistara flight suffered a mid-air scare that ended with a delayed landing in Lucknow and the two pilots being de-rostered, new details of the hours of horror are emerging with passengers sharing first-hand accounts.
A passenger on board the flight called the experience “worse than Gemini Circus’ giant wheel”.
Senior journalist Sheela Bhatt, treasurer of the Editors’ Guild of India, said she had texted her brother ‘Farewell’, because she was not sure if the plane would land safely. “Vistara gave me a fright I never got before. For a frequent flier like me, it was a routine journey. But that day, for a few minutes, I thought I am near death,” she recalled.
However, three days after the incident, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has given clearance to the de-rostered pilots to resume flying. “After perusal of facts of the matter, both the involved crew are hereby cleared for resuming their normal flying duties without prejudice to outcome of final investigation report,” it told Vistara in a letter.
What went wrong
The incident took place on 15 July. Flight UK 944, an Airbus A320neo carrying over 150 passengers, took off from Mumbai at around 2:45 pm, and was scheduled to land in Delhi around 5 pm.
However, it couldn’t land thanks to adverse weather conditions, and proceeded to its ‘destination alternate’, Lucknow, according to a statement issued by Vistara, backed up later by the DGCA’s account of events.
But there were low visibility conditions in Lucknow, forcing the pilots to seek diversion to Kanpur, which the Kanpur air traffic control (ATC) did not allow. Meanwhile, ATC Lucknow was alerted that the plane was low on fuel and needed to land at the earliest.
Another landing option was Prayagraj, and according to Vistara’s statement, the pilots informed passengers that they would be heading there. But soon after turning towards Prayagraj, ATC Lucknow alerted pilots to return as weather conditions had improved. This time the passengers were not informed, and the Vistara spokesperson said the decision was taken in a hurry and passengers couldn’t be informed.
“The unexpected drop in visibility at the destination alternate was the main reason why the aircraft ended up in a low-fuel situation despite carrying excess fuel over and above the required flight plan fuel as per regulations. Safety of passengers and crew was kept at the highest priority throughout the flight,” the spokesperson said.
The flight finally landed at IGI airport, Delhi, at 1:30 am, and passengers managed to exit the airport at 2:10 am.
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Harrowing account
Bhatt recounted her harrowing experience on board the flight, ever since the flight first encountered turbulence before approaching Delhi.
“Much before Delhi arrived, there was turbulence, which felt like a roller coaster ride. We felt as though the plane may break into pieces, like a biscuit,” she recalled.
“Around 5 pm, our flight was told by the air traffic control at IGI airport that it cannot land due to weather conditions. After this, none of the passengers had a clue as to where we were headed. Passengers on board were horribly scared and disturbed. All of them started chanting their respective religious mantras.”
Asked about the communications from the pilots to passengers, Bhatt said: “The pilot did not say much to satisfy the passengers… We were really happy that at least we landed safely. When at the exit door, I asked for Anand Bhawan, Vistara ground staff told me that it is not Prayagraj but Lucknow. I was surprised and all other passengers were confused. It was the duty of the pilot to inform us.”
An email sent to Vistara seeking comment about the incident was not answered until the time of publishing this report.
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It is clear from her language that she is dramatizing the entire thing.
“Plane will break like a biscuit .”
“Respective religions mantras ”
Please avoid such childish reporting.
Airline pilots operate under the norm Aviate Navigate Communicate – Fly the aircraft, Navigate safely (in this case land safely), then communicate.. communication to the passengers will have to wait until last. In emergency situations pilots may not be able to even give updates to ATC beyond what is absolutely essential.. Good decision by DGCA to return the pilots to active duty..