Air India plane overshoots runway after brakes fail

Lucky escape for 134 passengers at Jammu airport

June 09, 2017 10:13 pm | Updated 10:13 pm IST - Jammu

A major tragedy was averted after an Air India plane from Delhi with 134 passengers on board suffered a brake failure on landing here and skidded beyond the runway before coming to a halt at the end of the strip. Following the accident the airport had to be shut.

The airline said all passengers were safe and there was no damage to the aircraft.

AI 821 took off from Delhi at 11 a.m. and reported a brake failure as it touched down at the Jammu airport a quarter past noon.

Tyres burst

As the plane overshot the runway, four of its tyres burst, an official said. The airline was operating an Airbus Classic A320, which is due to be phased out within a few months, according to an Air India official.

“As per initial reports, after touchdown the plane had a brake loss and all emergency procedures were followed. By the time the plane stopped, it had skidded beyond the runway. Four wheels deflated during this. There is no damage to the property and no injuries to anyone,” said the airline official.

Airport authorities said as many as 10 flights had been affected because of the incident.

Air India plans to retire all its classic A320s by the end of this fiscal and has placed an order for 22 A320 Neos out of which four have already been inducted by the airline.

Pilots in the past have termed this plane “lethal and snag-prone”, and had two years ago urged the aviation regulator DGCA to ground these planes in the interest of passenger safety.

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