Panic gripped onboard passengers of Delhi-Srinagar IndiGo flight after it met with mid-air turbulence before a safe landing at the destination but with a broken nose on Wednesday evening, media reports said.
The 6E2142 flight carrying 227 passengers was hit with a hailstorm while it was nearing the Srinagar airport.
The pilot had declared an emergency with Air Traffic Control but ultimately managed a safe landing at the destination at around 6:30 pm.
All passengers and crew had landed safely and were evacuated.
In an X video, passengers were seen holding their seats tight amid chaos as the flight was resisting the hail storm.
Sheikh Samiullah, a start-up founder from Srinagar, was one of the passengers who suffered the battering from inside the plane.
Samiullah narrated his “terrifying” experience and said the pilot had asked all passengers to fasten their seat belts midair.
A five-member Trinamool Congress delegation including MPs Derek O’Brien and Sagarika Ghose also experienced the turbulence as they were heading for Srinagar.
They had landed safe at the airport.
In an official statement, IndiGo said, “IndiGo flight 6E 2142 operating from Delhi to Srinagar encountered sudden hailstorm en route. The flight and cabin crew followed established protocol and the aircraft landed safely in Srinagar.
“The airport team attended to the customers after arrival of the aircraft, prioritising their wellbeing and comfort. The aircraft will be released post necessary inspection and maintenance.”
IndiGo later confirmed that the aircraft was grounded for inspection and maintenance.
Pilot Amarnath Kumar said as quoted by Times Now, “It is highly likely that the aircraft encountered hail or debris while penetrating the CB cloud or while flying near the thunderstorm cell.”
“The radome, though built to withstand some weather elements, can be punctured by large hailstones or high-speed impact with debris in a dust storm.”
On the other hand, a sudden hailstorm with heavy rain lashed out at Delhi-NCR late Wednesday evening.
