A SpiceJet plane carrying 80 passengers and crew from Delhi to Shillong had to land at Patna on Monday after pilots reported a crack at the top of the cockpit windshield. The flight, which had taken off from Delhi at 7:03 AM and was to land at 10:02 AM in Shillong, successfully landed at the Jay Prakash Narayan International Airport, Patna.
Top managers at SpiceJet explained that the change of the route was done as a preventive measure; the damaged layer constitutes only a third of the three layers of the aircraft’s windshield. The management of the airline admitted that while the flight pressurization was normal, an emergency landing was not performed during the flight. The aircraft landed safely on the ground, and as with any other routine and standard manner, people were disembarked from the aircraft.
Another official from SpiceJet added that though there was a crack, the plane did not have any safety issues at the time. The diversion was only a cautionary measure, and the aircraft was taken out of service for a short time to have a windshield changed. To passengers who have been inconvenienced, the airline has availed other means of transport.
The flight is at present operating as SpiceJet Q400 and is still waiting on approval from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) after the cracked windshield was replaced and fixed before it was returned to service. Although the act interrupted the plane’s journey, there were no accounts of there being any more problems or people injured. The airline was quick to calm the travelling public, explaining that all safety measures were implemented at the time of the accident.
Today’s incident only adds to the strings of initiative measures taken by the airlines to guarantee the safety of both passengers and crew, as explained by the necessity to maintain the reliability of the aviation means and be attentive during the flight.
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