Flight returns due to technical snag

Immediately after the incident, all the passengers were disembarked from the aircraft and send to different hotels in the city. They were accommodated in batches on different flights of other airlines bound for Kuala Lumpur.

The incident has been notified to the DGCA and an inquiry has been ordered.

It may be recalled that a Doha-bound flight had to return to Chennai airport after a bird hit the aircraft while taking off in the third week of November this year.

Airport sources on Friday said that during the inspection it was found that the left engine was damaged in the bird-hit. The turbine blade was also damaged. The aircraft was grounded for repair. “The mishap happened soon after the plane started to pick up speed on the runway. It happened as the flight was moving near the Pallavaram-end of the runway. The pilot cut the power and stopped the plane immediately after the bird hit the flight,” sources added.

Airport officials noted that Chennai airport has been facing trouble from birds occasionally on the Pallavaram-end because of the garbage being disposed by the residents of the area. Last month’s mid-air bird-hit was said to have happened possibly because of migratory birds crossing the flight path.