Thiruvananthapuram: An Air India Express flight ferrying passengers from Kerala’s capital Thiruvananthapuram to Dubai returned on Sunday barely a couple of hours after take-off due to an issue with the air conditioning system of the aircraft.
The flight, IX 539, which took off with 178 people onboard — including the crew — at 1.19 PM returned back and landed safely at 3.52 PM, news agency PTI reported an airport official as saying.
The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew are fine. A local standby was declared. It was an AC issue, ” the official said.
The airline arranged for another aircraft to accommodate all the passengers for the rescheduled departure, as per an Air India spokesperson.
In a statement, an Air India spokesperson informed: “Air India Express flight (IX-539) operating from Thiruvananthapuram to Dubai, experienced a technical issue with the air conditioning system after take-off. The operating crew elected to carry out a precautionary landing at Thiruvananthapuram.
The airline promptly arranged for another aircraft to ensure a comfortable journey, accommodating all the guests for the rescheduled departure at 1800 hours.”
