CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin on Friday praised the crew of a Sharjah-bound Air India Express flight that faced a technical snag mid-air and later landed safely in Tiruchy airport.

The chief minister in a post on 'X' said: "I am heartened to hear that the #AirIndiaExpress flight has landed safely. Upon receiving news of the landing gear issue, I immediately coordinated an emergency meeting with officials over the phone and instructed them to implement all necessary safety measures, including deploying fire engines, ambulances, and medical assistance. I have also now directed the District Collector to ensure the continued safety of all the passengers and to provide further assistance. My compliments to the Captain and crew for the safe landing."

The Chief Minister had also held an emergency meeting with officials and directed them to follow all safety measures. 

The Sharjah-bound Air India Express flight shortly after departing from the Tiruchy airport at 5.30 pm today suffered a hydraulic failure, and went around Tiruchy for nearly two-and-a-half hours before making a safe landing at the same airport, at around 8:15 pm today. It was carrying 141 passengers.

#WATCH | Tamil Nadu: The Air India Express Flight IX 613 from Tiruchirapalli to Sharjah, which faced a technical problem (Hydraulic failure), has landed safely at Tiruchirapalli airport.

(Outside visuals from Tiruchirapalli airport) pic.twitter.com/ttcQCMW7HJ

Meanwhile, the airline has said that it will provide alternate flight arrangements to the passengers.

Later, in a statement, Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said that the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) will conduct a thorough examination of the Air India Express plane to ascertain the cause of the glitch.

(With PTI inputs)