Air India Express flight to Dubai diverted to Muscat due to burning smell in cabin

An Air India Express aircraft operating from Calicut to Dubai was diverted to Muscat after a burning smell was observed from one of the vents in the forward galley of the flight on Saturday.

A senior official of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) confirmed that the Air India Express B737-800 aircraft VT-AXX operating flight IX-355 (Calicut-Dubai) was diverted to Muscat as, during Cruise, a burning smell came from one of the vents in the forward galley.

"Crew carried out a non-normal checklist for smoke fire or fumes and diverted to Muscat and landed safely," he said.

The official also told that the on-ground engineering inspections were carried out as a relevant task of the Fault Isolation Manual. He said that the Engine Ground run was carried out with both the ENGINE and auxiliary power unit (APU) operating.

"It was checked for smoke; however, no fumes or smoke was observed from either engine or APU. There were no observations of the smell of fuel, oil, or hydrogen contamination. The oven in the forward galley was released under MEL (minimum equipment list)," the official noted.

Recently, three Aircraft of International airlines made emergency landings at various airports in the country in the last 48 hours, making it a day of technical emergencies for various airlines.

A senior official in the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) informed that these landings were made in Calicut, Chennai, and Kolkata on Friday and Saturday.

All emergency landings happened because of various technical issues.

The Air Arabia aircraft while operating flight G9-426 from Sharjah to Cochin was involved in a Hydraulic failure. The aircraft landed safely on the runway. The aircraft has been towed to the bay.

In another incident, on July 16, an aircraft of Ethiopian Airlines from Addis Ababa to Bangkok made an emergency landing at Kolkata airport due to a pressurisation issue.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has ordered a detailed probe into all of the incidents, the official noted.