Rajkot–An IndiGo flight carrying 194 people from Dubai to Mumbai was diverted to Rajkot International Airport on Monday after the crew received a smoke warning from the aircraft’s cargo hold.
Flight 6E-1452, operated with an Airbus A321, was rerouted to the Gujarat airport in accordance with standard aviation safety procedures rather than continuing to Mumbai.
Airport authorities declared a full emergency at 2:45 p.m. and deployed fire trucks, ambulances and other emergency response teams ahead of the aircraft’s arrival.
The plane landed safely at 3:27 p.m., and all 194 people aboard disembarked without injury. The emergency response was withdrawn after the passengers had exited the aircraft.
An official said the plane would undergo a technical inspection to determine what caused the smoke indication.
“IndiGo flight 6E 1452, operating from Dubai to Mumbai, was diverted to Rajkot International Airport today as a precautionary measure due to a technical issue,” IndiGo said in a statement.
“The aircraft landed safely at Rajkot, and all passengers have deboarded securely. An inspection of the aircraft is currently underway before it is cleared to resume operations. An alternate aircraft is being arranged to complete the journey and in the meantime, we are assisting our customers and making all necessary arrangements to ease the waiting time,” an airline spokesperson said.
“We sincerely regret the inconvenience caused to our customers due to this unforeseen situation. At IndiGo, the safety of our passengers and crew remains our utmost priority.”
A smoke warning does not necessarily mean there is an active fire, but such alerts are treated as potentially serious because a cargo-hold fire can pose a major safety risk. Flight crews are trained to activate fire-suppression procedures, declare an emergency and land at the nearest suitable airport when necessary.
Authorities have not disclosed what triggered the warning, and no damage to the aircraft has been reported.
IndiGo is India’s largest airline by market share and operates flights to more than 80 domestic and 30 international destinations. Its fleet consists mainly of Airbus A320 and A321 aircraft, along with ATR 72-600 turboprops used on regional routes. (Source: IANS)
