IndiGo’s Kolkata-bound flight cancelled after skidding on runway

Budget airline IndiGo’s Kolkata-bound flight 6E-757 was cancelled after it skidded while taxiing for take-off in Assam’s Jorhat yesterday. While taxiing, one of the main wheels partially run over the grass adjacent to the taxiway, as per a statement by the airline.  

The statement further read, “As a precaution, the pilot held the taxi procedure and asked for necessary inspection. The aircraft was taken back to the bay at Jorhat for inspections. During the initial inspection there were no abnormalities observed.”  

It also mentioned the maintenance team initiated a thorough inspection and the flight was cancelled thereafter. An Airports Authority of India (AAI) official said there was technical issue with the aircraft and flight got cancelled at around 8:15 pm.  

The AAI spokesperson further told news agency PTI, “There were 98 passengers on board. All passengers deboarded and are safe.” An IndiGo spokesperson said, “We are currently checking the information.” 

The development comes a day after the chief of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) Arun Kumar said the hullabaloo around the recent events is unfortunate. He further said an aircraft is a complex machine and may continue to be used for air operations if it is compliant with airworthiness requirements as laid down by the DGCA.  

He also said, “Yes, we had diversions, air turnbacks, rejected/abandoned take-off, precautionary/priority/emergency landings, missed approaches, cancellation due to technical snags and return to bay after pushback, but tell me, which aviation market does not have these issues?” 

Taxiing refers to the movement of an aircraft on the ground, under its power, in contrast to lowering or pushback where the aircraft is moved by a tug.