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An Air India Express flight from Pune to Bhubaneswar suffered a bird hit at the Pune International Airport Wednesday, and the pilots aborted take-off.
An Air India Express spokesperson said, “One of our aircraft had a suspected bird strike before take-off from Pune. As a precaution, we accommodated guests in an alternative aircraft, arranged on priority. We regret the inconvenience.”
Mohammad Nadeem, a passenger on the flight, said the plane was on the runway, and had sped up to take off when they felt a jerk. “Whatever the maximum speed of the aircraft is, 200-300 kmph. And then suddenly there was an impact which shook the plane. People’s phones fell out of their hands,” said Naseem.
“I was sitting at the window seat, and I saw a spark coming out of the engine. For the next 10-15 minutes, there was no information, then the pilot announced that a large bird had impacted the engine and the flight would not be able to take off,” he added.
He said he was travelling to Delhi via Bhuvaneswar, and the airline accommodated him on a direct flight to the national capital.
Increased incidents of bird hits around the Pune airport have raised concerns about risks to flights. On June 20, a bird hit was detected on a Delhi-Pune flight after it landed.
In June, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC)’s Solid Waste Management Department appointed officers and special teams for round-the-clock garbage management around the city airport.
Dhoke wrote to the Pune Municipal commissioner on June 18 about garbage dumping by unidentified people along the eastern and western perimeter walls of the airport. He also mentioned potentially unauthorised shops, godowns, garages, and scrap yards around the airport, contributing to garbage and other dangers.
Dhoke told The Indian Express Thursday, “The cleaning operations that PMC had begun in the previous month are going on continuously. PMC is picking up garbage from all four sides. The results will definitely show, it is an ongoing process and not a one-time thing. Bird activity increases in the Monsoon season.”
In a separate incident, a Delhi-Pune Air India flight was delayed by 4 hours and 26 minutes on Tuesday due to maintenance issues.
An Air India Spokesperson in a statement said, “Flight AI2982 operating from Delhi to Pune on 5 August was delayed due to a maintenance task identified prior to departure requiring additional time for rectification”.
“Our ground colleagues in Delhi airport extended support to the passengers to minimise the inconvenience caused due to this unforeseen delay. Arrangements were made to fly the passengers to their destination, Pune, at the earliest. At Air India, the safety and well-being of passengers and crew remain top priority.”
A passenger, Akhill Gupta, who was on the flight, posted about the delay on X.
“Boarded 1st flight at 12:30 hrs n landed now in Pune at 20:00 hrs. 2 hrs journey prolonged to 7:30 hrs. Thanks @MoCA_GoI for creating duopoly of airlines. Other one is worse than this, so we have no options. People rant and nothing happens.”
