Karachi: An IndiGo flight to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, was on Saturday forced to make an emergency landing at the Jinnah International Airport in Pakistan's Karachi city following a medical emergency onboard.
The aircraft, which departed from New Delhi, was in Pakistani airspace when a male passenger fell seriously ill, according to sources from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).
According to Geo News, the passenger was a 55-year-old Indian man. “The pilot of the Indian airlines contacted the air traffic control at the Karachi airport after the passenger did not get better even after he was given oxygen,” the source said.
“The air traffic control allowed the Indigo aircraft to land in Karachi on humanitarian grounds where a medical team has now gone into the aircraft to provide emergency treatment to the passenger,” he added. After the issue was resolved, the flight departed Karachi and returned to New Delhi instead of continuing to Jeddah, the report said, quoting sources.
IndiGo to send planes to bring passengers from Istanbul
Meanwhile, IndiGo is sending two planes to Istanbul to bring back passengers stranded in the Turkish capital after their flight to Delhi was cancelled on Friday due to a technical issue.
On Thursday, hundreds of IndiGo passengers were stuck at Istanbul airport after their flights to Delhi and Mumbai were delayed. They were stranded for over 24 hours, and many took to social media to complain about the delays and lack of facilities. There was a cascading effect on the airline's scheduled flights on the two routes.
IndiGo, on Friday evening, said all necessary steps were taken to ensure customers were apprised and provided with refreshments and accommodation, where possible. On Saturday, IndiGo said its flight 6E 12, operating from Istanbul to Delhi, was cancelled due to a technical issue. The cancellation happened on Friday.
The airline operates two daily flights to Istanbul with leased Boeing 777 aircraft -- one from Delhi and another from Mumbai. "Alternative aircraft have been arranged to transport passengers to their destination. We sincerely regret the inconvenience caused and appreciate their understanding in this matter," the airline said in a statement on Saturday.
A source in the know the airline will be sending two A321 planes to Istanbul to bring the passengers from there. Details about the number of passengers who were booked on the cancelled flight on Friday could not be immediately ascertained. (PTI inputs)
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