Delhi-Bound SpiceJet Flight Takes Mid-Air U-Turn To Pune After Technical Glitch

A Delhi-bound SpiceJet flight from Pune made a mid-air turnback shortly after take-off to the originating airport due to a technical glitch on Monday. The airline, however, maintains that the flight did not land under emergency conditions.

Following take-off, the crew observed an illuminated flap transit light and decided to return to Pune as a precautionary measure. "Shortly after the flight took off, the flap transit light illuminated, and the operating crew carried out all necessary checks in accordance with standard operating procedures," a SpiceJet spokesperson said in a statement. 

The aircraft landed safely, and the passengers were deplaned normally, the spokesperson said, adding, "Affected passengers are being accommodated on alternate flights or offered full refunds."

The flight SG937 had departed with a delay of 40 minutes from its scheduled time of 6 a.m. from Pune airport, and was to land in Delhi at 8.10 a.m., as per the flight tracking website flightradar24.com.

SpiceJet has reported numerous technical glitches in the past few months, including a recent incident on August 29, where a flight carrying 205 passengers, including four children, and seven crew on board, made an emergency landing at the Srinagar airport after an "emergency due to pressurisation problem."  

In June, a SpiceJet flight from Hyderabad to Tirupati, with 80 passengers on board, returned 10 minutes after taking off from the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport after experiencing an intermittent illumination of the rear baggage door light. 

According to the data provided by the Ministry of State for Civil Aviation, as many as 5,706 flights were cancelled due to regulatory and geopolitical issues this year till June 30, accounting for around 1 per cent of the total departures during the same period. 

The data covered the flights of Air India, Air India Express, IndiGo, Akasa Air, SpiceJet, and Alliance Air.