Air India flight to US makes precautionary landing in Russia; clearances obtained for relief flight

An Air India flight, heading to San Francisco in the US, had to make a precautionary landing in the Siberian region of Russia on Friday after the crew detected a potential issue in the cargo hold area. The Air India flight, carrying 225 passengers and 19 flight crew, landed safely at Krasnoyarsk International Airport, the airline said.

In a statement confirming the unplanned landing, Air India said that the precautionary landing in Russia took place around midnight local time. 

“⁠Air India’s local support was activated to assist passengers, who were required by authorities to remain in the terminal building in the absence of Russian visas. Food and beverage amenities at the terminal, which were closed for the evening, have now opened and meals are being provided to all passengers,” it said.

Officials of the Indian consulate in Moscow rushed to the airport overnight to work with the Russian authorities and allow passengers to move to hotels. “Regulatory clearances have been obtained for a relief flight that will depart Mumbai at 1100 hrs IST and ferry the guests out of Krasnoyarsk International Airport later today,” said the airline. 

This is the second time in little over a year that an Air India flight on the same route made an unscheduled landing in Russia. While many US and EU airlines avoid the Russian airspace, Air India uses the route, giving it a flying time and cost advantage to US-bound flights. 

The airport stated that the plane landed due to an activated smoke detector. Shortly after the incident, Russia's civil aviation agency, Rosaviatsiya, said on the Telegram messaging app the aircraft was taxied to a parking spot and there were no signs of a fire or smoke onboard.