Bengaluru - Kochi Air India Express flight catches fire in engine, makes an emergency landing

A total of 179 passengers and six crew members were on board, and everyone was declared to be safe.

An Air India Express flight made an emergency landing in Bengaluru airport after its engine caught fire post taking off on Saturday night. A total of 179 passengers and six crew members were on board, and everyone was declared to be safe.

Bengaluru - Kochi Air India flight catches fire, makes an emergency landing

The incident happened on a Kochi-bound flight minutes after taking off from Kempegowda International Airport. The management of Air India Express released a statement and said that all passengers were evacuated safely from the aircraft. “On May 18, 2024, flight IX 1132 from Bengaluru to Kochi made an emergency landing at Bengaluru airport at 11:12 pm after a reported fire in one of the engines. As flames were seen emanating from the right engine after takeoff, the Bengaluru- Kochi flight elected to return and carried out a precautionary landing at Bengaluru. The ground services also reported flames, resulting in an evacuation."

The airline further said that they will be arranging alternate flight for the passengers. “The crew accomplished an evacuation with no injuries to any guests. We regret the inconvenience this has caused and are working to provide alternative arrangements for our guests to reach their destination as soon as possible,” the statement further added.

On Friday, a full emergency was declared at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport at around 5:52 pm for an Air India flight 807 from Delhi to Bangalore as fire was reported in the AC unit. There were 175 passengers on board and the flight landed back safely at the IGI around 6.38pm.