Open door forces Air India flight to return Friday Nov 15,2013

 

Around 400 passengers and crew of an Air India flight from Jeddah to Mumbai via Hyderabad on Friday Nov 15,2013 had a mid-air scare when it had to return soon after take-off after a cockpit panel showed that one of the doors was not properly locked.

The Boeing 747 Jumbo flight AI 964 on Jeddah-Hyderabad-Mumbai route with 380 passengers and 12 crew members took off from the Jeddah early this morning.

But as soon as it was airborne, a warning light indicating that one of the aircraft doors was open went on in the cockpit, airline sources said.

The pilot then decided to return to Jeddah, where airline engineers carried out thorough checks on the aircraft.

Due to this, the flight was delayed by about two hours and when it took off again, it was diverted to Mumbai instead of going to Hyderabad as the Flight Duty Time Limitation of the cockpit and cabin crew was about to end.

The plane landed safely in Mumbai and the Hyderabad-bound passengers were flown to the further ahead by another flight, an Air India spokesperson said.