Close shave for SpiceJet passengers as plane overshoots runway at Shirdi airport

A Boeing 737 aircraft operated by SpiceJet operating on the Delhi-Shirdi route, overshot the runway while landing at the Shirdi airport on Monday.

A Boeing 737 aircraft operated by SpiceJet operating on the Delhi-Shirdi route, overshot the runway while landing at the Shirdi airport on Monday. Photo: ANI

MUMBAI: A Boeing 737 aircraft operated by SpiceJet operating on the Delhi-Shirdi route, overshot the runway while landing at the Shirdi airport on Monday. No harm, however, was caused to either the passengers or the crew. "On 29 April 2019, SpiceJet B737-800 aircraft operated SG 946 from Delhi to Shirdi. While landing at Shirdi, the aircraft overshot the runway. Passengers and crew are safe and are being deplaned normally," the airline said in a statement. All the passengers and the crew, however, are safe, and efforts are on to tow away the aircraft from the runway and resume operations at the earliest, PTI quoted airport director Dhiren Bhosale as saying. "A SpiceJet aircraft shot off the runway by about 50 meters and skidded off. There is no injury to any passenger and the crew, though. Our first priority is to evacuate passengers without compromising their safety," Bhosale told PTI over phone from Shirdi. Both the pilots of the flight have been grounded, pending enquiry, the airline said, adding the incident took place around 1630 hrs. The number of passengers and crew on board the B737- 800 aircraft is, not known immediately, he added. Bhosale said the aircraft is stuck on the runway due to which all arrivals and departures are halted. "We are making all efforts to tow away the aircraft and clear the runway for operations as the earliest,"he added. SpiceJet said its B737-800 aircraft (SG 946) from New Delhi was involved in the incident. Shirdi, around 180 km northeast off Mumbai, is a popular Hindu pilgrim centre thronged by both the well-heeled as well as the common man. (With inputs from agencies)