An Indigo flight, scheduled to operate the Ranchi-Patna-Lucknow route, was grounded at Ranchi鈥檚 Birsa Munda airport on Friday after a tyre-related issue raised safety concerns, airport officials said.
The flight 6E 6152, which had arrived from Kolkata around 3:15 pm, was scheduled to operate onward to Patna and Lucknow.
However, after post-landing checks at Ranchi airport, the aircraft was found to have a problem with its front wheel as the pilot noticed that one of the front tyres appeared to be unusually deflated. This prompted the airline to cancel the flight before departure.
To ensure passenger safety, a full deboarding was carried out without incident.
The airline鈥檚 spokesperson also confirmed that the flight was cancelled due to a technical fault and assured passengers that alternative arrangements were being made. He also stated that the airline鈥檚 priority was to ensure the safety of passengers and provide them with minimal disruption to their travel plans.
An Airports Authority of India (AAI) official said there was no major technical fault but confirmed that the aircraft was grounded purely as a precaution.
鈥淎fter landing at Ranchi, the pilot suspected one of the front tyres might be deflated and requested an inspection. The flight was grounded due to precautionary safety reasons,鈥 airport director RR Maurya said as quoted by news agency PTI.
He added that Patna passengers were sent by road, while those traveling to Lucknow were put on other flights via alternate routes.
The technical faults are a common cause of flight disruptions, and airlines take every precaution to ensure that their aircraft are airworthy.
(With inputs from PTI)