Air India Delhi-Moscow plane called back

INDIA -- An Air India Moscow-bound plane was Saturday called back after one of its pilots tested positive for COVID-19, local media reports said. The VTEXR Air India flight on its way to Moscow from Delhi to bring back stranded Indians was immediately asked to return as per the protocol. Since it was a ferry flight, reports said only the crew was on board. A local media report quoting sources said the plane was somewhere near Uzbekistan when it was asked to return. “Sources said it was a genuine oversight as the pilot’s COVID-19 positive report was misread as negative in preflight checks,” local TV channel News18 said. “It is believed to be a human error and as soon as it was realised, it was rectified.” Soon after the aircraft landed in Delhi, it was deep-cleaned and sanitised as per protocol.

“The infected pilot and the rest of the crew have been quarantined,” the channel said. India on Saturday reported 7,964 COVID-19 new cases, so far the highest single-day spike, during the last 24 hours, pushing infection tally across the country to 173,763. Saturday marks the 67th straight day of an ongoing lockdown across the country announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to contain the spread of the pandemic.

(Xinhua)