An Air India (AI) aircraft to London Heathrow (LHR) was diverted to a West Asian country, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on March 23, due to a suspected technical fault. The flight departed from Bengaluru, the southern part of India.
Bengaluru to London Heathrow
Flight AI133, operated by a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, was airborne for over six hours before it was diverted to King Abdulaziz International Airport (JED), Jeddah, at around 2 p.m. GMT. All passengers and crew members were unharmed in this incident.
The airline released a statement that said:
“Air India Flight AI133, operating from Bengaluru to London Heathrow on 23 March, made a precautionary en route diversion to Jeddah following a suspected technical issue.”
The Indian flag-carrier didn’t disclose the number of passengers and crew members on board the flight but said their safety was its highest priority.
This is the second diversion incident involving Air India in recent days.
Air India and its recent diversions
The diversion of the London-bound flight to Saudi Arabia came in the period of tense situations across West Asia because of the ongoing U.S.-Iran war.
This is also not the first time the airline’s aircraft has been diverted in recent times. On March 19, the airline’s flight to Vancouver returned to Delhi after being in the sky for about seven hours.
The airline stated that the diversion was made because the flight was not cleared for the route. Though all the passengers and crew disembarked safely in Delhi, this happened because of an apparent lapse in updating operational requirements for flights to Canada.
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