Alert pilot saves 141 Air India passengers

Chennai, Aug 22

It was a close shave for 141 passengers and crew of a Chennai-bound Air India flight as the pilot managed to safely land the aircraft here Saturday despite a tyre burst while taking off from Singapore.

"The officials of Singapore airport suspected a tyre burst in the Chennai-bound Air India flight when they found pieces of rubber on their runway and warned us, as well as the pilot," an official of the Chennai airport told IANS.

He said the Singapore officials found the tyre pieces immediately after the plane took off. The official said that of the four underbelly tyres, one had burst.

The authorities at the Chennai airport took the necessary precautions like spreading foam on the runway and placing engineering support like step ladders and vehicles to transport the passengers and crew of the aircraft to safety.

The aircraft landed safely at 11.15 a.m. "It was towed to a remote parking area and passengers got down from the aircraft," the official said.

While nearing the Chennai airport, the pilot had warned the passengers about the tyre burst which had created anxiety and fear among some of them.

(IANS)