Air ambulance lands on belly at Mumbai airport, no casualties
MUMBAI: A chartered plane carrying five people, including a doctor, landed on its belly at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) on Thursday evening after declaring a full emergency, with the airport authorities foaming the runway to avoid the plane catching fire.
Jetserve Aviation’s Beechcraft C-90 aircraft VT-JIL was a nonscheduled medical flight between Bagdogra in West Bengal and Mumbai. Its left rear wheel got separated and fell off at Nagpur, where it had halted for refueling.
CSMIA spokesperson confirmed the full emergency and said that the flight landed safely at 9.09pm and all passengers were safely evacuated. The flight was carrying a patient and his relative, a doctor and two crew members onboard.
Airports officials aware of the developments said the pilot contacted the Mumbai air traffic control (ATC) at around 7.20pm to inform about the issue, after which the ATC declared a full emergency and informed all the stakeholders at CSMIA.
“As preparations for the crash landing had to be made, the aircraft was on hold until the runway was foamed so that the aircraft does not catch fire. It finally approached and landed on runway 27 at 9.09pm,” said an airport official who did not want to be named.
Airport officials said that the aircraft had sufficient fuel to hold its landing and hence the pilot decided to land on the aircraft’s belly.
Airport officials said that the patient on board the flight was positive for Covid-19 and was immediately rushed to Nanavati Hospital.
“Showing immense presence of mind Capt Kesari Singh belly landed the aircraft on foam carpeting in Mumbai,” Union aviation minister Hardeep Singh Puri tweeted.