One missed chance to land led to 30-min wait

Kolkata: A problem in the Boeing 737-800 aircraft's controls in which chief minister Mamata Banerjee was travelling from Bagdogra to Kolkata on Thursday forced the pilot to let go of the first opportunity to land at 2.58pm.
Though the snag was sorted out within a couple of minutes and the pilot was ready to steer the aircraft back to align with the runway, the situation had changed dramatically.
Bad weather, an emergency in the air and a missed approach by a freighter in the turbulent 30 minutes that followed kept the Jet Airways flight carrying Mamata on hold. It was only after the cascading events concluded that flight 9W-2481 had the chance to approach the runway once again and land. The Jet Airways pilot did not contact the ATC to seek a priority landing, citing the presence of CM on board. And the controller in touch with him did not impose any restrictions.
These are the findings of the investigation into why the flight carrying Mamata had hovered over Kolkata for over 30 minutes despite reaching Kolkata on time. Though there was nothing unusual in the sequence of events on Wednesday afternoon, the probe was conducted following a formal complaint from the state government. An angry Mamata had on Wednesday claimed that her flight had been deliberately delayed till it was low on fuel. "A disaster could have happened any moment," she had alleged.
Though everyone in the aviation industry was shocked at her outburst and the accusation, airport officials said that while an error could have happened, suggestion of an intentional act that would jeopardise safety of a flight was preposterous. Officials hope the probe report, that is expected to be submitted to the state government and civil aviation ministry on Friday, will clear the air.
23/09/11 Times of India

To Read the News in full at Source, Click the Headline

Categories: airports Sep 2011, Jet Airways Sep 2011