Passenger on Indigo flight tampers with exit door, FIR filed

MUMBAI, Jan 29: In a second instance of a mid-air misadventure by flyers in about a month, a passenger on board an Indigo flight 6E 5274 from Nagpur to Mumbai attempted to remove the cover of the emergency exit when the aircraft was still airborne and approaching the airport in Mumbai for landing, endangering the lives of the passengers on board.

"An FIR has been filed against the passenger for unauthorised tampering of the emergency exit as the aircraft was in the process of landing," an Indigo statement said. The Mumbai airport police officials registered the case when the plane landed. The incident took place on January 24.

There was “no compromise” on the safety, it added. "On noticing this violation, the crew on board alerted the captain and the passenger was appropriately cautioned," the statement added.

On December 10 last year, a passenger travelling on Indigo flight 6E 7339 from Chennai to Tiruchirapalli accidentally opened the emergency exit, next to his emergency seat, during the boarding process. The incident was logged and the aircraft underwent mandatory engineering checks, and the exit door had to be refitted (once opened, it needs to be refitted) which led to a delay in the flight's departure. The incident had created panic among passengers.

What are “Emergency Exit Seats.”

An Indigo statement says “Emergency Exit Seats” means the seats in the emergency exit rows of an aircraft, namely the:

12th and 13th rows in an A320 aircraft;
17th, 18th and 27th rows in an A321 aircraft with 4 over-wing exits and 222 seats;
17th and 27th rows in an A321 aircraft with 2 over-wing exits and 222 seats;
18th, 19th, 28th and 29th rows in an A321 aircraft with 4 over-wing exits and 232 seats; and,
1st and 2nd rows in an ATR aircraft.

Bird-hit: Air Asia's Lucknow-Kolkata flight makes emergency landing

LUCKNOW, Jan 29: Air Asia's Lucknow-Kolkata flight on Sunday afternoon made an emergency landing back at Lucknow airport following a bird-hit soon after take-off. All passengers safely deboarded.

As the aircraft, a Boeing 737 Max 8, suffered damages to its radome needing maintenance, the passengers were being accommodated on other flights.

“Flight i5-319, scheduled to operate from Lucknow to Kolkata, encountered a bird strike during the take-off roll. As a result, the aircraft returned to the bay and was grounded for detailed inspection,” an Air Asia spokesperson said.

Bird-hits, aircraft glitches and incidents of unruly behaviour by air passengers have become almost an everyday affair in Indian skies.

What is a radome?

The word "radome" is derived from "radar" and "dome," indicating that it is a dome enclosing and protecting the radar dishes or antenna. The radomes or enclosures are designed such that they shield the antenna and electronics from rain, ice, UV light, wind etc and help smooth transmission and reception of radio signals vital for navigation. The protective shell thereby enhances the pointing accuracy of the antenna. The materials used will have electrical transparency so as not to interfere with the transmission efficiency. The radar that radome protects is one of the most critical components ensuring security and accuracy in avionics. Radomes have applications in various other fileds as well.