Chennai-bound IndiGo flight halted after smoke spotted during taxiing at Bengaluru airport
New Delhi, May 26
A major scare was reported at Kempegowda International Airport on Tuesday after smoke was noticed in an IndiGo flight bound for Chennai while the aircraft was taxiing for departure.
According to the airline, IndiGo flight 6E 6017 from Bengaluru to Chennai was taxing out towards the runway when smoke was observed in the aircraft.
In view of passenger safety, the pilot immediately halted the aircraft and an emergency evacuation was carried out.
Airport fire brigade teams and technical officials rushed to inspect the aircraft following the incident, which briefly triggered panic among passengers at the airport.
In a statement, an IndiGo spokesperson said all passengers and crew members were safely evacuated and moved back to the terminal.
"On May 26, while IndiGo flight 6E 6017 from Bengaluru to Chennai was taxing out to runway for departure, smoke was noticed in the aircraft. In the interest of safety, an immediate evacuation was carried out and all the relevant authorities were informed," the airline said.
The airline added that all passengers were safe and were being assisted by airport and airline staff. IndiGo also arranged an alternate aircraft to operate the flight.
"All customers and crew are safe and have been moved to the terminal, where they are being attended to by our teams to ensure their well-being. An alternate aircraft has been arranged to operate the flight which will depart shortly and refreshments are being served to the customers to ease their wait time," the spokesperson said.
The airline reiterated that passenger and crew safety remains its top priority. The exact cause of the smoke was not immediately known and technical teams were examining the aircraft.
"At IndiGo, the safety of our customers and crew remains our top priority," the spokesperson added.
— IANS
Reader Comments
This is why I always prefer trains over flights for short routes like Bangalore-Chennai 😅. But seriously, kudos to the pilot for quick thinking. In India, we always say 'safety first' but these incidents show gaps. IndiGo should release the technical findings soon for transparency.
As someone who flies frequently between Bangalore and Chennai for work, this is alarming. The response seems professional, but I'd like to know if this is a one-off issue or something systemic. Indian aviation has improved a lot, but incidents like these erode trust. Hope IndiGo does a thorough investigation.
Honestly, I'm tired of these 'smoke in cabin' news. It's becoming too common. Airlines in India are cutting costs and it shows in maintenance. At least the evacuation was done properly - no casualties. But yaar, passengers must have been traumatized. IndiGo needs to be more transparent about what went wrong.
Well done to the crew for evacuating quickly! 👏 It's easy to criticize, but in a stressful situation like this, they maintained composure. That said, why does smoke keep appearing? Is it engine oil leak or electrical? Hope the investigation is rigorous and made public.
As a frequent flyer on this route, this is concerning. Quick action by pilot saved the day. But I wish Indian media wouldn't sensationalize such events - the article is fine but some channels make it sound like a disaster
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