Close shave for 141 passengers of Air India flight

October 5th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Air India Monday said the cockpit of its Sharjah-Lucknow-Delhi flight IC-884 was not left unmanned during a mid-air scuffle that broke out between the pilots and cabin crew Saturday. "The committee constituted by the Air India management to inquire into the incident has concluded decisively that the cockpit was not left unmanned at any point of time during the flight phase," the airline said in a statement.

October 4th, 2009 KOZHIKODE - A rat has possibly done it, again. An Air India flight to Riyadh in Saudi Arabia was held up here Sunday, possibly due to a rat in the aircraft.

September 26th, 2009 AMRITSAR - Rat! It's that creature again that held up a London-bound Air India flight by nearly 11 hours from the Rajasansi airport here Saturday. Flight AI-187, which was scheduled to depart at 6.30 a.m.

September 25th, 2009 AMRITSAR - A rat delayed a London-bound Air India flight from the Rajasansi airport here Saturday morning. Flight AI-187, which was scheduled to depart at 6.30 a.m.

September 19th, 2009 KOLKATA - A Port Blair bound Air India flight Saturday took off from here, leaving behind 25 passengers with confirmed tickets as the airbus did not have the capacity to provide required seats to them. "The incident took place today (Saturday) morning when IC 287 had to take off without 25 passengers.

September 15th, 2009 MUMBAI - A Kingfisher Airlines flight to Bangalore returned minutes after take-off from here Tuesday when a technical snag was detected, an airport official said. Flight IT 103, with 80 passengers on board, took off from the Chhatrapati Shivaji Interantional Airport shortly after 9 a.m.

September 4th, 2009 MUMBAI - Nearly 215 passengers and crew of a Riyadh-bound Air India flight had a narrow escape here Friday morning when they were evacuated quickly after one of the plane's engines caught fire while proceeding for take-off. The fire was noticed by the ground staff while the aircraft had begun to taxi toward the runway and was immediately doused, Air India spokesperson Jitendra Bhargava said.

August 22nd, 2009 CHENNAI - One hundred and forty-one passengers and crew of a Chennai-bound Air India flight had a miraculous escape when the pilot managed to safely land the aircraft here Saturday in spite of a tyre burst while taking off from Singapore.

August 15th, 2009 KOLKATA - A Hyderabad-bound Air India aircraft with 28 passengers on board had to head back and make an emergency landing after a technical alarm bell went off minutes after it had taken off from here Saturday, an official said. "The flight took off at 5.14 pm from the N.S.C.

August 15th, 2009 KOLKATA - A Hyderabad-bound Air India aircraft with 28 passengers on board had to head back and make a 'precautionary' landing after a technical alarm bell went off minutes after it had taken off from here Saturday, an official said. "The flight took off at 5.14 p.m.

June 29th, 2009 NEW DELHI - An Air India flight to Hyderabad made an emergency landing here Monday, an hour after taking off from the Indira Gandhi International Airport. The airline said all passengers were flown to their destinations in another aircraft.

June 27th, 2009 SILIGURI - More than 180 passengers of a Delhi-bound Kingfisher Airlines flight had a close shave when the aircraft's wing hit the wall of a bunker while taxying on the runway before take-off from the Bagdogra airport here late Saturday. Airport director Kalyan Kishore Bhowmick said the wing got damaged due to the collision that occurred at a turning on the runway and the passengers had to be evacuated.

June 16th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Cathay Pacific Airways, which cancelled its New Delhi-Hong Kong flight Monday night minutes before the scheduled take-off, Tuesday apologised for the "inconvenience" caused to nearly 220 passengers. "We do sincerely apologise for all the inconvenience caused to our passengers," Tom Wright, general manager (India, Middle East, Africa and Pakistan) of the Hong Kong-based airline, said in a statement.

February 8th, 2009 MUMBAI - Nearly 170 passengers and 10 crew members of an Air India flight had a close shave Monday when a military chopper came in its path just as the passenger jet was about to take-off. The helicopter was part of President Pratibha Patil's entourage, an Air India spokesperson said.

February 8th, 2009 MUMBAI - A tragedy was averted Monday when the pilot of a New Delhi-bound Air India flight aborted take-off from the Mumbai airport after he spotted an army chopper landing on the same runway. The helicopter was part of President Pratibha Patil's entourage, an Air India spokesperson said.