Fuelling high drama in the skies, smoke from a burning engine filled the cabin of a Mangaluru-bound Jet Airways flight soon after take-off from Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) on Wednesday.
As passengers panicked mid-air, the flight returned for an emergency landing. Five of the 65 passengers suffered minor injuries.
The smoke was noticed barely 10 minutes after the Jet Airways flight 9W 2839 took off. Before it returned, a full emergency was declared at KIA to facilitate priority landing. The airport was closed for all other operations between 10.20 am and 10.51 am. All passengers and four crew members were immediately evacuated.
The Aircraft Rescue and Fire-fighting team had surrounded the turboprop ATR aircraft to prevent any eventuality. The injured passengers were rushed to the medical room for first aid, while the others were shifted to the airport lounge. They were accommodated in the next available flight at 1.45 pm. The aircraft was towed for a detailed inspection.
Passengers said it was a hard landing and the front wheel had suffered extensive damage. The pilot had accomplished the safe landing on a single engine.
The closure delayed the landing of three incoming flights, one each of Indigo, Jet and Air Costa. Departures of two SpiceJet flights, one Air India and one Air Asia were also delayed before normal operations resumed, a KIA spokesperson told DH.
Fifteen minutes into the flight, the passengers were shocked to see smoke fill the cabin and thicken quickly.
One of them, Ajeet Khare, a businessman from Mangaluru, recalled later that he first saw the smoke from one of the engines.
“I immediately alerted a crew member, who informed the pilot. The pilot then switched off the faulty engine and decided to go back to the Bengaluru airport,” said Khare.
As the terrified passengers turned edgy, the crew gave them towels to mask their faces and breathe easy. “But it was getting very uncomfortable.
The smoke was rising further during the five minutes of the return flight. I saw the engine on the lefthand side spitting fire,” Khare recalled.
Once the plane landed, the passengers were evacuated and asked to quickly run towards the terminal, as an explosion was feared.
“I saw the firefighters spray plenty of water and chemicals. I was not aware of anyone getting injured. But some of them jumped from the front door and might have suffered minor bruises. The crew was very helpful.”