IndiGo flight lands with '1-2 minutes' of fuel left

New Delhi: Passengers and crew aboard an IndiGo flight from Ayodhya to Delhi on Saturday ( April 13) faced nervy moments after its landing attempts at the destination failed due to bad weather conditions.

A passenger on board the flight said it finally landed in Chandigarh with little fuel left and he questioned if IndiGo followed all the standard operating procedures (SOPs).

However, an IndiGo spokesperson said the captain executed “an absolutely safe manoeuvre”, and the aircraft had sufficient fuel at all times”.

Flight 6E 2702 departed from Ayodhya at 3.25 pm and was scheduled to land in Delhi at 4.30 pm. Delhi Police Deputy Commissioner (Crime) Satish Kumar, who was one of the passengers, put out a post on X on the “harrowing experience.” He said the pilot informed passengers of adverse weather conditions upon nearing the destination around 4.15 pm and assured them that the aircraft had 45 minutes of holding fuel, a standard safety measure pilots follow in such situations.

“The pilot attempted landing twice, but couldn’t due to bad weather, and still wasted a lot of time deciding the next course of action,” Kumar said in his post. At one point, the flight descended and veered dangerously close to the runway before taking off again at the last minute, recalled Kumar when The Indian Express spoke to him. “Our hearts really sank then…I began writing a message to my family then,” said Kumar.
-B