AirAsia flight at Ranchi airport aborts take off after encountering bird hit

New Delhi: A day after an Air India Express plane crashed after overshooting the runway at Kerala's Kozhikode airport killing 18 people, an AirAsia India aircraft on Saturday morning aborted its take-off at Ranchi airport after encountering a bird hit

Just as the Mumbai-bound plane was about to take off from the Birsa Munda airport in Ranchi when the incident occurred, said the airline spokesperson.

"AirAsia India aircraft VT-HKG operating from Ranchi to Mumbai as flight i5-632 encountered a bird hit during scheduled departure at 11:50 hrs, today, 8th August 2020," stated the airline spokesperson.

The pilot used the emergency brakes and avoided a major mishap. All 176 people on board are reported to be safe and secure.

The pilot aborted take-off and the aircraft is currently being inspected, the spokesperson noted, adding that the flight is scheduled to depart once the aircraft is cleared for operations.

"AirAsia India prioritises the safety of our guests and crew and regrets the inconvenience caused on account of this delay," the spokesperson said.

The airline later issued a statement, which said, ''AirAsia India aircraft VT-HKG operating from Ranchi to Mumbai as flight i5-632 encountered a bird hit during scheduled departure at 11:50 hrs, today, 8th August 2020. The pilot aborted take-off and the aircraft is currently being inspected. The flight is scheduled to depart once the aircraft is cleared for operations.''

The Air India Express flight with 190 people onboard was returning from Dubai to Kozhikode and while making a landing at the tabletop runway the plane overshot the runway in rainy conditions and went down 35 feet into a slope before breaking up into two pieces.