Fire in Gulf Air aircraft disrupts traffic at Mumbai airport

PTI reports, the engine of a Gulf Air Airbus A321 aircraft with 124 passengers and nine crew caught fire a few minutes prior to its take-off today, disrupting flight operations at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport at Mumbai, for about an hour.

“The engine of the Bahrain-bound Gulf Air flight GF 065 caught fire just when it was lined up for departure,” a spokeperson for airport operator Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL) said, adding that all the people on board the plane are safe.

The aircraft was scheduled to take-off at 19:21 (13:51 GMT)

Immediately, apron control and fire officials rushed to the runway and put out the fire, the spokesperson said.

As a result of the incident, two Air India flights scheduled to land had to make a”go-around” and circle in the skies for some time before the airport could resume full operations.

An Air India official said one of its Chennai-Mumbai flights was diverted to Pune in addition to a Delhi-Mumbai and Bangkok-Mumbai flight being forced to make a “go-around”.

About Devesh Agarwal

A electronics and automotive product management, marketing and branding expert, he was awarded a silver medal at the Lockheed Martin innovation competition 2010. He is ranked 6th on Mashable's list of aviation pros on Twitter and in addition to Bangalore Aviation, he has contributed to leading publications like Aviation Week, Conde Nast Traveller India, The Economic Times, and The Mint (a Wall Street Journal content partner). He remains a frequent flier and shares the good, the bad, and the ugly about the Indian aviation industry without fear or favour.

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