40 Minutes of Fear: IndiGo Flight Circles Mid-Air Before Emergency Landing in Tirupati

New Delhi: A Hyderabad-bound IndiGo flight made an emergency landing in Tirupati on Sunday evening after encountering a technical glitch mid-air, leading the aircraft to hover for over 40 minutes before returning safely. 

The Airbus A321neo had taken off from Tirupati Airport at 7:42 PM, according to data from flight-tracking website Flightradar24. The aircraft reached the Venkatnagiri limits before turning back, circling in the air for around 40 minutes, and finally landing safely at 8:34 PM.

Passengers onboard reported panic during the incident but were safely disembarked after landing. Interestingly, IndiGo’s official website displayed a different record, showing the flight departed Tirupati at 7:20 PM and landed in Hyderabad at 8:30 PM, contradicting the live tracking data. The airline has yet to release an official statement on the technical glitch or the emergency landing.

Last Flight Cancelled, Passenger Anger Surfaces

Following the incident, the last Tirupati-Hyderabad flight for the day was cancelled, leaving several passengers stranded and frustrated. Videos circulating on social media showed angry travellers confronting IndiGo staff at Tirupati Airport.

This episode comes shortly after another IndiGo flight, operating on the New Delhi-Goa route, was forced to make a night-time emergency landing in Mumbai due to a technical issue. The back-to-back incidents have intensified concerns over airline safety at a time when the sector is under scrutiny, especially after the June 12 Air India crash near Ahmedabad that claimed over 260 lives and triggered discussions on maintenance standards across Indian airlines.

Earlier on Sunday, Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu urged the public and media to refrain from drawing premature conclusions until the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) completes its investigation.

“We will wait for the final report from the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau before drawing conclusions,” he said.

The Minister also addressed reports in foreign media, stating, “I appeal to Western media not to speculate,” while commending Indian authorities for successfully decoding black box data domestically, adding, “The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has been able to decode the black box data in India.”

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