Broken windshield grounds SpiceJet flight for nine hours

The Delhi-bound flight was scheduled to take off from Pune at 7:20 a.m.

February 23, 2017 01:13 am | Updated 01:13 am IST

Pune: A Delhi-bound SpiceJet flight SG999 was delayed for over nine hours at Pune Airport on Wednesday, as it had to be grounded owing to a broken windshield glass.

The airplane was scheduled to take-off from Pune Airport at 7:20 a.m., but it did not get off the ground before 4:35 p.m.

According to authorities, the windshield needed urgent repair, and the requisite spares had to be flown in. This caused the delay and inconvenienced the passengers.

The flight was rescheduled several times, according to passengers. Shekhar Khakurdikar, a city-based businessman and a passenger on the flight said, “Initially, we were told that there were problems with the windshield glass and that the flight would take-off by 10:30 a.m. It was postponed to another couple of hours later, while repairs were underway, then another couple of hours and so on.”

He said, “I left my home at 5 a.m. and have been stranded here ever since. While we appreciate the Airline’s commitment to safety, the planes ought to be serviced more regularly to avoid such delays.”

A statement issued by SpiceJet earlier in the day expressed regret for the delay informed and informed that the that maintenance work was underway. It also said some of the passengers had been diverted to other flights.

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