Air India's San Francisco-Bound Flight Faces Technical Snag; Returns To Delhi After 8 Hours Airborne

New Delhi: A San Francisco-bound Air India flight carrying approximately 230 passengers was forced to make an emergency U-turn and return to the national capital on Wednesday morning. 

The long-haul flight had been airborne for more than eight hours before it finally touched down safely back at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGI).  

According to airline sources, the aircraft, a wide-body Boeing 777-300ER operating flight AI173, departed from Delhi as scheduled. 

However, mid-flight complications forced the cockpit crew to abort the journey and turn back in accordance with strict aviation safety protocols.

Mid-Air Snag Over Chinese Airspace

Data from the live flight-tracking website Flightradar24.com revealed that the transatlantic flight had been operating smoothly for the first leg of its journey.

The aircraft had already crossed the Indian border and had been airborne for over three hours when the technical glitch was first detected. At the time of the U-turn, the Boeing 777 was traversing Chinese airspace.

Faced with a technical anomaly that required comprehensive ground inspection, the pilots elected to head back to Air India’s primary hub in Delhi rather than divert to an unfamiliar nearby airport.

Because long-haul aircraft take off with heavy fuel loads, returning to base often involves hours of flying time to safely burn or dump fuel to reach a permissible landing weight.

In total, the passengers spent more than eight exhausting hours in the sky only to land back at the departure gate.

Airline Issues Statement, Offers Ground Support

Following the safe landing in Delhi, Air India issued an official statement confirming the incident and clarifying that all standard operating safety guidelines were strictly adhered to.

"Flight AI173 from Delhi to San Francisco on May 27 has returned to Delhi due to a technical issue in accordance with the laid down procedures," an Air India spokesperson stated. "The aircraft landed safely and will undergo a thorough technical inspection in line with Air India's safety standards."

The airline expressed deep regret over the unexpected delay and inconvenience caused to the passengers.

Ground teams at Terminal 3 were mobilised immediately to assist the stranded flyers. Air India confirmed that it is making alternative arrangements to fly the passengers to San Francisco as quickly as possible.

In the interim, passengers were provided with refreshments, hotel accommodations, or immediate flight rescheduling options based on their individual preferences.ls.