INDIA. Mumbai: The movement of the flights was badly affected for a couple of hours when a chartered plane carrying six passengers and two crew members on board veered off the runway at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA), Mumbai, due to heavy rain and low visibility on Thursday evening.
The Learjet 45 aircraft, registered as VT-DBL, operating a flight from Visakhapatnam International Airport (VIA) to Mumbai, was involved in a runway excursion while landing on runway 27 at Mumbai airport. There were 06 passengers and 02 crew members on board.
As per the Passenger Manifest issued by VIA, Capt Sunel and Capt Neil (crew) and Dhruv Kotak, Lars Sorensen (Denmark), K K Krishnadas, Aakarsh Sethi, Arul Sali and Ms Kamakshi (passengers) were on board. Kotak is the managing director of Mumbai-based conglomerate JM Baxi Ports & Logistics Ltd, and Arul Sal is his executive assistant.
According to information, the mishap occurred at about 5:02 pm due to heavy rains and low visibility. Resultantly nearly 40 flights were delayed. The normalcy was restored at 6:47 pm.
The CSMIA said that the runway is open for use as of 18:47 after receiving regulatory approval and following the completion of all safety inspections. The airport officials added that they appreciate the prompt response from all stakeholders involved. They stated that when the problem arose, CSMIA reacted right away with the assistance of numerous stakeholders.
The CSMIA added that excellent and prompt response from the regulatory bodies, including the Airports Authority of India, the CISF, and airside operations. The Aerodrome Rescue and Fire Fighting Team, MIAL Medical Team, Ground Handling agencies, and Mumbai Fire Brigade made sure that the rescue operations were carried out quickly and without any casualties, according to CSMIA.
They also secured the airside by removing all debris right away, protecting the safety of every passenger, and resuming normal operations during rush hour.
In the meanwhile, passengers and crew are being treated at Criticare Asia Hospital located at Andheri East in North West Mumbai. Most of them are in a state of shock, medical officers said.
The aircraft is said to be around 14 years old and operated by VSR Ventures Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi. It provides chartered planes, and its fleet includes aircraft such as VT-BAS Beechcraft, Super King Air B200, VT-BAF Beechcraft Super King Air B200, and VT-MEG Pilatus PC-12.
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