UK-Bound Air India Plane Makes Precautionary Landing In Moscow Due To 'Technical Problems'

The Air India Boeing 787 plane AI 113 flight operating from New Delhi to Birmingham made a safe landing without any injuries to all 258 passengers and 17 crew members.

An Air India flight en route from India to Britain made a precautionary landing at Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport on Wednesday. According to the airport, the flight had to make the unscheduled landing due to "technical problems". 

The Air India Boeing 787 plane was operating AI 113 flight from New Delhi to Birmingham. It made a safe landing without any injuries to all 258 passengers and 17 crew members, news agency Reuters reported.

The flight was scheduled to depart for 2135 Moscow time (1835 GMT). On Thursday morning, the Air India plane departed from Moscow and landed in Birmingham. "After carrying out requisite checks, the aircraft took off from Moscow and landed at Brimingham on early Thursday morning," news agency PTI reported citing an official. There was no official statement from Air India.

"The aircraft’s crew requested an unscheduled landing at Sheremetyevo Airport due to technical problems," the airport said in a statement. "Airport services promptly responded to the crew’s request and prepared to receive the aircraft according to the applicable emergency plan. The foreign crew received full assistance from the Russian airport and specialists under the applicable international convention." it added, British online newspaper The Independent reported.

This was the third time thatan Air India flight had to make an emergency landing due to technical issues. In July, an Air India plane en route from Delhi to San Francisco made an emergency landing in the Russian region of Siberia after the cockpit crew detected a potential problem in the cargo hold area.

DGCA Orders Probe After Aircraft Engine Part Found Outside Delhi Airport

Aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA)  ordered a probe into the incident of an aircraft's engine part found outside the Delhi airport. The metal part is suspected to be of an Air India Express aircraft that made an emergency landing at the airport on Monday. The airline has neither confirmed nor refused if the metal pieces were from its aircraft.

"An Air India Express spokesperson said its flight IX 145 encountered an engine issue after takeoff from Delhi on September 2. The flight was bound for Bahrain.The failure was managed in accordance with laid-down procedures, and a precautionary landing was conducted at Delhi," the spokesperson said in a statement.

"The matter has been reported to the regulator and other agencies concerned and is currently under investigation.We are aware of reports of metal pieces being found at Shankar Vihar. At this time, we cannot confirm if these metal pieces are from our aircraft. The investigation is ongoing to establish the facts," the spokesperson added.