Two Air India Flights Make Emergency Landings at K'kode, Chennai

Kozhikode/Chennai, Apr 30 (PTI): Two Air India flights with 254 passengers on board made emergency landings at Kozhikode and Chennai airports respectively after suffering a bird hit and oil leakage, airport sources said.

The Dubai-bound AI 937 flight with 148 passengers and six crew landed at Karipur International Airport near Kozhikode soon after take off following a bird hit, while the Kochi bound flight from Chennai with 106 passengers and five crew returned to that city after its pilot detected oil leakage, they said.

Soon after take off from Kozhikode at 10 AM,a bird hit the right engine of the Airbus A-321 aircraft, bending its blades under the impact.

The flight, with a full fuel load, dumped fuel into the sea and returned within 40 minutes. All passengers and crew were accommodated in nearby hotels, the sources said.

The Kochi bound flight made an emergency landing in Chennai about one hour after its pilot detected oil leakage.

Soon after take off at 10.20 AM, the pilot reported an oil leakage, following which security personnel were alerted for an emergency landing.

After taking precautionary measures, the flight landed safely at 11.10 AM, the sources said.