There were some tense moments for passengers and crew of an Air India Express flight from Bengaluru to Kochi in South India when one of its engines caught fire shortly after takeoff. While any kind of emergency midair can be nerve-racking, a fire can certainly be panic-inducing. Thankfully, the crew managed to safely evacuate the Airbus A320 upon landing with no reported injuries.
On May 18, an Air India Express flight took off from Bangaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport (BLR) for a scheduled flight IX 1132 to Cochin International Airport (COK) in Kerala. The Airbus A320 departed more than an hour late at 22:59 against a scheduled departure of 21:45.
But shortly after takeoff, flames were seen coming out of the right engine. This prompted an immediate turnaround of the A320 by the cockpit crew back to Bengaluru airport, where a full emergency was declared. A spokesperson for BIAL, which manages Bengaluru Airport, said,
“On May 18, 2024, IX 1132 from Bengaluru to Kochi made an emergency landing at BLR Airport at 11.12 p.m., due to a reported fire in one of the engines. A full-scale emergency was declared, and the fire was promptly extinguished upon landing. All 179 passengers and 6 crew members have been successfully evacuated from the aircraft.”
Indeed, the flight crew members followed protocol and evacuated the plane after the fire was extinguished. Citing PTI, Mint quotes one of the passengers of the aircraft as saying,
“They were very responsible. They assisted us in exiting. They did everything possible in one minute to rescue us. We are grateful to them.”
A situation like this can be panic-inducing, and one of the videos circulating on social media shows a flight attendant instructing the passengers to remain seated until further instructions from the captain, adding that everything is under control.
Air India Express made alternate arrangements for the passengers to reach Kochi, although there were some inconveniences related to baggage. According to Mint, one of the passengers said that while they received their hand baggage, she still did not receive her check-in luggage, which the airline promised would be delivered to her home address. Simple Flying has contacted Air India Express for a comment regarding the incident and will update the article as and when we receive it.
The aircraft involved in the incident is a 10.3-year-old Airbus A320-200, registered VT-ATF. It previously flew for AirAsia India but recently got transferred to Air India Express as part of their merger process.
Air India Express exclusively operated Boeing 737 aircraft before it became privatized. But when the Tata Group took over, the new management decided to merge it with AirAsia India, turning it into a more consolidated low-cost carrier that would complement its full-service parent airline, Air India, which itself is going through a merger process with Vistara.
Air India Express, which previously primarily operated medium-haul international flights, has now been doubling down on domestic operations, particularly to tier-2 and 3 cities, as it expands its reach within the country.
The airline has big plans for the future.
Have you experienced a midair emergency during a flight? Please let us know in the comment section below.
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